Genesis
by Hbeloc
Summary: A better prepared Harry survives a much more devastating Death Eater attack after the Quidditch World Cup. Harry is kept on the edge of sanity and has never felt more alone. Voldemort is not the problem, only a symptom, and Harry is determined to fix wizarding Britain as a whole. Warning: Character death, brutal magical combat Harry/Fleur
1. In the Beginning

**A/N: Hello there! This is my first fanfiction and keep in mind, I'm no author. That will become incredibly obvious rather shortly I'm sure. This is an idea that popped into my head a while ago that I decided to jot down. This will become progressively more AU the further along the story goes, as events change.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, never have and never will. Even any OC's I may have, I'm sure someone else owns those too.**

**Rewritten as of July 16, 2020. Changed the perspective to third person and rewrote the end, making it not so repetitive.**

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**Chapter One: In the Beginning**

"Harry, wake up!"

Harry awoke as Mr. Weasley frantically shook him. He sat up and grabbed his glasses from the nightstand.

"What's wrong?" Harry asked, as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"Hurry, we need to leave."

Harry got up and pulled on a spare robe, then followed Mr. Weasley into the living area of the tent. He saw Ron and Hermione standing off to the side looking confused and sent them a questioning gaze; they both just shook their heads, they seemed to know about as much as he did.

"Dad, what's going on?" Ron asked. Harry could hear his voice wavering, it seemed he was _afraid_. Harry walked over and stood next to Hermione; she gave him a worried look.

"Death Eaters are attacking the campsite. We don't have time to discuss this. We need to get to the portkey." Mr. Weasley said as he walked quickly towards the exit. He looked back towards the trio, "I'm going to help William and Charlie. Get to the forest and hide!"

Harry saw Ron and Hermione's faces pale. _What the hell is a Death Eater?_ Harry asked himself as he was pulled out of the tent by Hermione. He could tell that right now wasn't the time to ask, so he quietly allowed himself to be pulled.

The first thing Harry noticed was the screaming, as the smell of smoke assaulted his senses. Half of the campsite was on fire as if he had stepped into Hell. He could see figures in black robes and white masks levitating what looked like the muggle that had taken their money when they arrived. It seemed that the black robed people were the Death Eaters, at least he assumed that was the case. The Death Eaters not assaulting the muggle and his family were blasting away some tents and setting the rest on fire.

"Hurry, we have to go!" Hermione said as she grabbed his arm and started dragging him with her through the crowd. Harry could feel her grip on his arm loosening as they were being pushed along.

Someone pushed Harry hard from the side and knocked him to the ground, causing the grip Hermione had on him to fail. "Harry!" He could hear her yelling his name as she was pushed along by the stampede of terrified people. He struggled to stand but kept getting pushed down by the people rushing by. By the time he finally got to his feet, Ron and Hermione were nowhere to be found in the sea of frightened faces. Suddenly, there was an explosion behind him. First, he felt the heat and then the pressure that blew him to the ground. All he could hear was a ringing in his ears and felt something wet on his face.

He rolled on his side to try and sit up to find himself staring into a pair of lifeless eyes. He quickly pushed himself back in surprise and noticed that the lower half of the wizard was _missing_. Harry slowly reached up to his face and slid his fingers down where he felt a slick, sticky liquid now on his fingertips. Harry looked at his hand and saw the blood, then leaned over and vomited. There were bodies and limbs lying around near the charred ground where the spell exploded. He could just make out the pained screaming as the ringing in his ears started to subside. Harry slowly stood and started stumbling into the trees while wiping the blood off of his face with his robes. He ran behind a large tree and leaned on it to catch his breath and calm himself down.

_This is insane._

He looked towards the campsite and saw only chaos. Like a light show, he could see people in red and white robes trading spells with the Death Eaters, stepping over the broken bodies of their victims. He was almost mesmerized by the spell fire when out of the corner of his eye, Harry noticed a girl carrying a child in her arms run into the tree line about a hundred meters ahead of him. After she made it into the trees, he saw a group of Death Eaters break off from the group fighting the red robed group, it seemed that they were chasing the girls into the woods.

Harry hesitated, then forced himself to run after the girls to help. The ringing had finally stopped and now he could clearly hear the sound of dead leaves and broken twigs under his footsteps as he ran. He continued to run through the eerily dark and foreboding forest until he finally saw the girl stumble through the trees ahead of him. She was moving much too slowly; the Death Eaters would catch up soon.

He made his way to cut the girl off. The older girl gasped, and while holding the smaller girl with one arm, pointed her wand at Harry with the other, a frightened look on her face. Harry put his hands up in a non-threatening posture with one finger up to his mouth to convey silence. Harry hoped she understood. Both of their heads turned sharply as they heard talking in the distance. He looked at her and waved for her to follow him. She looked conflicted but decided to follow anyway. Harry guessed she would rather take her chances with him, not that he could blame her. Harry drew his wand and grabbed her hand to start running back the way he came from. Deciding to take his chances with the red robed men. Surely, they were the good guys if they were fighting the Death Eaters.

As they ran, Harry realized that she was stumbling along, and he was practically dragging her. Harry stopped and turned to see a pained expression on her face, she was injured and there was a gash on her right leg trailing blood along the forest floor. Her face was pale from blood loss and she strained to carry the girl in her arms. She quickly looked over her shoulder into the darkness behind us, the robed men were going to catch up and they both knew it.

"They are following your blood. It's trailing behind us." Harry whispered to her as he pulled her over to a nearby tree. He wouldn't have thought it possible, but her complexion paled even more in fear. Harry cut a piece of his robe off with a quick Diffindo and tied it around her leg. He would worry about infection later if they make it out of this. _We can't run anymore; I have to think of something. _Harry's brain kicked into overdrive as he tried to quickly think of a plan. He could hear them getting closer. Harry looked down at the trail of blood leading to their hiding place. Something clicked. He grabbed her hand again and quickly moved her out of the way, while carefully vanishing any blood that followed them. He then placed both girls off to the side and behind a tree.

"Sit down and hide here." Harry smiled at the child, who had been surprisingly quiet this entire time. "It'll be alright," he told her. His gaze snapped to the older girl, "don't come out, no matter what you hear."

Harry tapped his wand on both of their heads, disillusioning them. Tapping his wand on his own head, he silently thanked Remus for the extra lessons they had. After he had taught him the Patronus Charm, Harry begged Remus to teach him more of how to defend himself.

Just in case.

Silently running to a tree directly behind the one that he had left the blood trail at, Harry crouched down and kneeled waiting for the Death Eaters to get closer.

"That bitch couldn't have gotten too far away with that leg of hers, _and_ she was carrying that child." The masked man spat, kicking a rock out of his way.

"Shut up Rawlings and move. Just follow the trail and we will find her. I'll enjoy killing her after what she did to Booth." A second Death Eater spat angrily.

Two of the Death Eaters were bickering between themselves while the other two remained silent. Harry waited for them to get closer in front of the tree before he sprung his hastily made trap. As soon as they were in position, he rose his wand, "**Confringo**!". Suddenly the tree exploded in front of the Death Eaters, impaling them with searing hot splinters and knocking them backwards onto the ground. One landed on the ground and didn't move, another lay screaming holding the remainder of his leg. The other two quickly stood up and looked ahead with their wands drawn. Harry caused his invisibility to fade, wanting them focused on only him.

"You son of a bitch!" the robed man introduced as Rawlings yelled and shot a silent Reducto right at the green-eyed wizard. Harry barely moved to the side in time to dodge and cast a Protego that sent off the other Death Eaters Stupefy off to the side, into a nearby tree. He then fired a Reducto into the ground in front of the Death Eaters that blew dirt and rocks into their faces, giving him time to run behind another tree. A sickly yellow curse took a chunk out of the tree right where Harry hid.

"Get out here and beg for forgiveness, and _maybe_ I will let you live!" Rawlings laughed as he hit the tree with a _Reducto_, effectively destroying most of Harry's cover. Harry then summoned a large fallen tree trunk from behind Rawlings that took his legs out from under him and then sent a Stupefy towards his fallen body just for a shield to pop up in front of him, deflecting Harry's spell into the ground. As Rawlings was standing back up, Harry fired another Confringo at the other Death Eater and he shielded, but the force knocked him backwards. Harry then banished the same tree trunk back at Rawlings just after he managed to stand, effectively taking out his knees. Harry was exhausted and breathing heavy at this point, the mock duels he had done with Remus were never this intense. He hit Rawlings with a Stupefy while he was on the ground, before the other could stand back up to shield him. Harry then peeked out of his broken cover to fire another spell when he saw a crimson spell rapidly hurling towards him. He threw up a quick shield, but it was useless.

_**PAIN**._

It was his world now, all encompassing, and never ending. He couldn't even think straight, for an eternity it carried on. Until suddenly it stopped as quickly as it came. Harry could hear someone talking but had no idea what they were saying. His body twitched and his throat hurt. he didn't even remember where he was. _Wait, who's laughing?_

"I'm not sure where—" _Who is that?_ Harry could barely remember what he was doing.

"—but it was a foolhardy move—" _A foolhardy move? What was? _He felt like he recognized this voice.

"—kill those girls right in front of you." The voice stopped. Harry then remembered. He was hit by a dark red spell from the guy who's missing most of his leg, Harry couldn't believe he had forgotten about him. His limbs were twitching sporadically but could still feel his wand in his hand. Harry opened his eyes to see the usually silent Death Eater standing near him. Rawlings was over behind him face first on the ground with his hips resting on the tree he had banished at him. The one-legged man was sitting down with his wand pointed at his leg, trying to stop the bleeding. The fourth was lying on his back still, over to the left. Harry wondered why he didn't revive his buddies.

"Do you hear me Potter?" the Death Eater snarled, a disgusted look on his face. "Yes, I know who you are. How _kind_ of you to deliver yourself to me, my Master will be pleased. How foolish of you to think you could take us. For what? To help a couple tramps? The _great_ _Harry Potter_, done in because he thinks he is a _hero_." The moron laughed and he slowly walked toward Harry.

_Step. By. Step._

"Now, let me drag those two bitches out here so you can see what being a hero _gets_ you." He put on a disgusting smile, sending a chill down Harry's spine.

While the moron was monologuing, Harry's spasms had calmed down slightly. With a firm grip on his wand, he lifted it into the air and tightly clenched his eyes shut, "**SOLARIS**!". A cannon blast and a light as bright as the sun erupted from his wand. He was deaf, but so was the monologuing Death Eater; he was holding his eyes while blood dripped from his ears. The gimp man was pointing his wand at Harry with his eyes closed, a yellow spell missed him by inches.

Harry opened his eyes and aimed his wand at the Death Eater on the ground, "**Reducto**!". His spell hit him square in the face with a sickening _crunch_. Harry turned and fired another at the other man, but his arm twitched, and he missed. Harry then sat up in a kneeling position to take aim again but was too slow. He felt a sledgehammer slam into his chest blowing him into a tree and sending his glasses to Merlin knows where. Harry coughed up blood and realized that he couldn't feel his legs. His vision was blurry and the back on his head was killing him, probably a concussion. The black robed moron lifted his wand towards the young wizard; the tip of the deadly stick glowing a dull viridian. All Harry could think about was hoping that the girls were able to get away, he faced his killer with the most brilliant smile he could muster on his blood-soaked face. As the Death Eater's wand was raised waist high, a bright red spell slammed into the idiot's side.

He fell and was still.

A girl slowly materialized in front of Harry and looked around, checking for more enemies. She then slowly started walking towards him. It was the girl that he had been dragging all over the forest; she had never left. A part of him was _livid_ that she didn't run away while he was fighting, but the other _grateful_ that she had saved him. Harry put a bright smile on his face as he stared at her. As she got closer, he realized that he had never really got a good look at her; she was beyond beautiful. Her long silver hair seemed to shine in the moonlight and her bright blue eyes practically glowed in the dark. She had a heart shaped face and her skin was an alabaster that seemed to glow in the moonlight.

Harry couldn't stop staring. In fact, he decided that he really didn't want to. The smile on her face made her beauty almost otherworldly. She opened her mouth to speak, "-". He couldn't hear a _damn_ thing but would do almost _anything_ to hear her voice. He cocked his head to the side in confusion; she stopped talking and knelt down in front of him. He wanted to ingrain the smile on her face into his brain so he would never forget. In fact, Harry could probably now die happy. His eyelids felt like lead weights and he struggled to keep them open. His eyes closed for just a moment, but when he opened them again there were multiple red robed people standing in front of them with their wands raised.

The Goddess's back was turned to him and Harry noticed a smaller silver haired girl standing behind her, as if she was hiding. A man in blue and gold robes stepped forward and the mini goddess ran into his outstretched arms. The older girl seemed to have a conversation with him, but Harry's ears were still useless. He struggled to move and let out a silent gasp as he clenched his eyes shut, it felt like his spine was broken. Harry opened his eyes and noticed that everyone was staring at him, it would seem his gasp wasn't as silent as he had thought. The man in blue walked up and knelt down in front of him. The man then raised his wand and aimed it at the broken boy, his moving lips were the last thing Harry saw before the darkness overtook him.

* * *

Fleur knelt down next to the bloody and beaten Harry Potter while her father ran his diagnostic spells on the boy. "What happened here Fleur?" Her father asked, wand light slowly dimming as he finished his series of spells. Gabrielle suddenly grabbed his arm, his attention switching to her distraught younger sister.

"It was awful Papa," the small blonde said, her eyes red from crying, "The bad men hurt Fleur and chased us into the trees." Gabriel's eyes immediately snapped to Fleur and looked over her form, noticing the black cloth wrapped around her leg.

"I'm _fine_ Papa," she pointed to her savior, "_he_ needs your help more than me. I will tell you everything later." Her father sighed and nodded, moving to clean some of the blood off the boy. Harry was very clearly _broken_, and she couldn't help but feel _useless_. Frustrated tears began to sting her eyes as she thought about it. A boy three years her _junior_ had saved her and her sister both, while the only thing she could do was run away completely terrified. Fleur wiped her eyes and turned around, looking at the destruction the fight had caused.

Large chunks could be seen blown out of trees, while others were completely broken in half, laying haphazardly across the forest floor. There were some Aurors surveying the carnage while others knelt next to the fallen Death Eaters. "_Merlin_," Fleur heard one of the two Aurors kneeling by the one-legged man, her eyebrows raising at seeing the bright pink hair of the female Auror. "His face was _completely blown off_."

"_Disgusting_," The pink-haired woman chipped in, "There's no way we can even verify his identity." Morbidly curious, Fleur slowly walked near the body, trying to get a peek at the fallen man. When one of the Aurors shifted, she caught a glance of the Death Eater's head. Or rather, what was left of his head. The only thing remaining was the lower jaw and broken teeth, the rest was probably scattered around the forest. His tongue stuck out with the base of it running into the man's throat, covered by blood and pieces of flesh.

She immediately turned to vomit. Catching the attention of both the Aurors. "I agree." The girl said while nodding. Her gaze moved to Fleurs and she pointed towards the half decapitated man, "What was this guy hit with?"

"I don't know," she admitted, "my ears were still ringing from the explosion."

"_What_ explosion?" The other Auror said as he stood up, using his wand to vanish the blood he had gotten on his hands.

Fleur began to answer when a recognizable 'pop' was suddenly heard. Albus Dumbledore stood calmly surveying the scene, ignoring the myriad of wands now pointed at him. Once the legendary wizard's gaze fell on Harry Potter, he made a straight line towards the fallen boy; moving quicker than she expected a century old wizard could. Fleur quickly made her way towards her father and sister.

"Gabriel, how is he?" The Hogwarts Headmaster asked her father, as if speaking to an old friend. The older French man sighed as he stood, finally finished cleaning Harry's body of blood and the small cuts the boy had suffered.

Fleur watched her father run a hand through his hair as he looked at Dumbledore, "He's hurt Albus; _severely._ I need to get him somewhere _safe_ and _sterile_."

"Can he be moved?"

Gabriel let out a deep sigh, "I can put him in stasis and use a portkey to my home." Her father explained, "He's going to need supervision to make sure his spine heals correctly." Fleur saw Gabriel hesitate, as if carefully picking his next words. "He _killed_ some of them Albus."

Fleur's eyes widened as she spoke up for Harry, "It was self-defense!" Her eyes shied away when the old wizards twinkling blue eyes turned to her, but she took a deep breath and calmly explained what she had gone through, remembering to not leave out any details. By the time she was finished her father had put Harry on a stretcher in stasis and Dumbledore was looking towards the sky with a pensive look. The Headmaster finally looked Fleur in the eyes. His gaze felt like it was boring into her soul, it was an awfully uncomfortable moment, but Fleur held his gaze.

Then he _smiled._

Fleur watched him put his hands behind his back and turn to her father, "He's going to need somewhere he can rest. Gabriel, would you mind?" Her father answered with a single nod. "Thank you, old friend."

Gabriel just waived it off and beckoned her over, "Fleur, Gabby. Come here." As Fleur was walking, her father fumbled around in his robe looking for something. "Where is it?" he mumbled to himself.

Dumbledore strode over to him, pulling out a length of rope with a smile, "Please, use this."

Her father just looked at Dumbledore, bemused. "Do you always carry around rope?"

The Headmaster's twinkled brightly, "But of course; it never hurts to be prepared."

Gabriel just shook his head as he grabbed the rope, pointing his wand at it. "**Portus**." He handed the portkey to Fleur and motioned her sister over to him. "This will activate in thirty seconds," He said as he pulled both her sister and herself over to the unconscious Boy-Who-Lived, "Take him and put him in the infirmary." He paused a moment and looked at Fleur with a steady gaze, "Stay with him in case he wakes up. He _shouldn't_, but I don't want him waking up _alone_."

"Of course, Papa." The portkey began to glow, so she quickly had her sister hold one end of the rope while she held the middle and the other end draped across Harry's chest. Just before she was whisked away, Fleur watched as a tall dark-skinned man apparated into the clearing. The last thing she heard before the familiar pulling behind her navel was the upset yelling of the Auror, "Albus! There's been a fata—"


	2. And That Day, the World Stood Still

**A/N: A slower chapter and also slightly shorter, but necessary I felt for the characters themselves. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I still own nothing, but someday...**

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**Chapter Two: And That Day, the World Stood Still**

The bed was the first thing I noticed. Hard and lumpy, just like a hospital bed. It reminded me of my tenure in the hospital wing. Surely, I'm not at Hogwarts.

"_Papa, is he okay_?"

"_He'll be fine_."

I overheard a woman conversing with a man in French. I opened my eyes to see the goddess and the man I last saw in blue. He's tall and handsome with dark brown hair and brown eyes. The only thing that gave away his age were the specs of white in his hair and the wisdom in his eyes. No longer was he wearing his blue robes, I wondered just how long I had been out. The girl noticed my eyes open and quickly sat in the chair next to my bed. I took a second to look around and found myself in what looked to be a medical bay. There was a white sheet separating my bed from the entrance of the room. The only people I could see are my dream wife and the older man. I turned my head to look at the girl, but before I could speak the man called my name.

"Mr. Potter," He said with a conviction that caused me to tear my eyes away from the girl. "I want to thank you for what you have done for my family." He slightly bowed his head and noticed the look of confusion on my face. The French man smiled softly, "Fleur told me about what you did for them." He gestured to the angel sitting next to me. "You put your life on the line to help them, and for that I am eternally grateful." He walked to the foot of my bed and grabbed what I assumed to be my medical chart with a slightly sad look on his face. "You were injured quite severely. Fractured skull, three fractured vertebra, ruptured eardrums, post cruciatus tremors." He set the chart back down, "It took about three days to heal you, and I still wasn't able to completely."

"What do you mean, completely?" I asked with no small amount of trepidation in my voice. _What the hell couldn't he fix?_

The next words I heard came from Fleur, "The spinal column is a tricky thing to heal. We can help it heal with magic, but your body has to do the rest." I'm surprised at how little of an accent she has.

"She's right," he nods, "You will be able to walk, but you will need a cane for a while." I looked at him with a horrified gaze. "Only for a couple months." He laughed, "Just to give your spine enough time to heal." He explained with a small smile. "I would like to keep an eye on you for a while, just to make sure there are no problems."

This man, that I've never met before, healed me and then wanted to take care of me? Red flags. What did he want from me and where were the Weasleys? According to him I've been under his care for three whole days. I couldn't be at the campsite still, that would have all been broken down by now.

"Where am I?"

"You're at my home in France, this is my private medical facility." He answered simply. "I brought you here after the second day that you were unconscious. I spoke to Dumbledore about the severity of your injuries and convinced him to let me bring you here."

"And he just let you take me? And all the way to _France_?" I asked incredulously. I heard sweet laughter to my right and couldn't help but look. Fleur had one of her hands covering her mouth, trying to stifle her laughter.

"What's so funny?" I looked back to the man confused.

"Dumbledore and I have known each other for years." He smiled and walked to the left side of my bed and stuck out his hand. "Gabriel Delacour, at your service."

I shook his hand, "Harry Potter, but it seems you already know that." I looked back to my right and see Fleur standing right next to my bed.

She smiled radiantly, "Fleur Delacour." She officially introduced herself, "I wanted to thank you for what you did for my sister and me. I can't imagine what would have happened if you hadn't helped."

_I can. _

"Don't worry about it," I responded while looking down sheepishly, "anyone would have done the same."

"That, Harry, is where you are wrong." Gabriel looked at me with a gentle smile, "Most would have left two strangers to their fate." He walked over to Fleur and wrapped her in a one-armed hug while she softly smiled, "We owe you more than we can say. I most likely would have lost my two angels that night."

I looked down at my hands, a question on my lips that I wasn't sure I wanted answered. I gathered my courage and looked up at Gabriel, "The Death Eaters, were they caught?".

Gabriel's hesitation wasn't a good sign. I struggled to sit up, my back to the headboard. I looked to Fleur; she was smiling at me sadly. "Sir?" I ask cautiously. That seemed to snap the older man out of his thoughts.

"I'm sorry Harry. Yes, they were caught. But…" Gabriel trailed off. That isn't good, something was wrong. Was someone else hurt? I noticed the small girl was nowhere to be found. "There were two deaths." My gaze immediately snapped to his.

What? Who? The younger girl? My voice caught in my throat as I tried to ask.

"A piece of the tree you blew up pierced through one's eye. It was probably quick." Fleur whispered the last part. My head slowly turned to her. "The other…" I noticed Fleur shivered and look away.

"Who was the other?" I'm barely able to whisper. _Please_ let the girl be okay, I prayed.

Fleur closes her eyes and audibly swallows. Surely not.

"The man with one leg." Gabriel suddenly states. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding, thank Merlin. Then I remember the crunch after my spell hit the gimp.

"My Reducto." I answered softly. I had killed two people and I'm slightly worried about the ease in which I'm able to justify their deaths, it was them or _us_. Speaking of us. "Is the little one safe?" I looked up at Fleur.

Her eyes softened as a smile grew on her face. "Yes, she was uninjured and with my mother. Gabrielle is smitten with you now." She laughed softly and I couldn't help but blush and look away. "She was already obsessed with Harry Potter, now I'm sure it will be even worse."

Fleur's harmonious laugh was heavenly. I could get lost in it and never find my way out. "I'm glad she's okay." I whispered softly. I couldn't help but think what could have happened if I hadn't intervened and it disgusted me. "Well," I turned my eyes back to the others, "what now?"

Gabriel brought his hand up to his chin in thought. "For now, you will stay here with us." He looked down at me, "I mean, if that is fine with you. I would like to keep an eye on you to make sure there are no aftereffects from the Cruciatus curse you experienced." He motioned with his hand to Fleur and smiled, "Fleur does not go back to Bouxbatons until the first of September and has agreed to help me make sure you are fine."

I look at Fleur's smiling face, feeling slightly surprised. "You don't have to do that," I stupidly sputtered, "I'm sure you have better things to do than watch over me."

"Nonsense Harry," Fleur waived away my concern with a cute wave of her hand, "it's the least I could do for saving Gabrielle and I." I just stared at her with wide eyes.

"You saved me too, remember?" I reminded her.

"_Non_. You wouldn't have even been in that situation if you didn't come to help us." She explained.

"I couldn't just leave you…" I trail off, looking away embarrassed.

"Well." Gabriel said with a clap of his hands, startling both Fleur and me. "Unfortunately, I have to go speak to Dumbledore and let him know you have awoken." He pointed to a small dresser next to my bed, "Your wand and some spare robes are in there. If you get dressed, Fleur will show you where you will be staying now that you're awake." He made to leave, "Ah, I almost forgot." Gabriel pointed to an intricately carved cane leaning next to the dresser, "That's yours. Like I said, you'll need it for a while." I watched as Gabriel turned and left through the white curtain.

"I will see you in a moment, just come out of the curtain and through the door when you are ready. I'll be waiting outside." Fleur explained, beautiful smile still on her face. I just nodded dumbly, not trusting myself to speak as she turned and left.

* * *

Fleur really was a wonderful tour guide. Attentive, beautiful, knowledgeable, and also beautiful. I could listen to her talk about nothing for hours, for some reason it seemed to calm me down. She led me through the house slowly, and then rather carefully after I nearly took a tumble down a flight of stairs. This damn cane. It really was hard to get used to, not to mention I still felt like I was run over by a hippogriff. The house itself was quaint, only two stories and not too awfully large. It seemed about the perfect size to me, especially considering there were only four people that lived here. Gabriel and his wife Apolline, Fleur and her sister Gabrielle, and now me for now. Halfway throughout the walk I was finding it hard to concentrate, my mind kept going back to the two Death Eaters that I had killed. I was feeling rather guilty to be honest, surely I could have done something different. Everything was just going so fast. Suddenly Fleur stopped in front of me and turned to look, it seemed she noticed my lack of communication.

"Harry?" She said with a concerned look on her face, "Are you okay?"

No.

"Yes." I said, not able to look her in the eyes. I never have been a very good liar, hopefully she didn't notice.

"Hmmm, if you really want someone to believe you," she gently lifted my chin so that I was looking her in the face, "you really should look them in the eyes." Fleur let go with a smile when she noticed me blushing. "What is wrong?"

"Can we sit?" I asked, "My back is killing me."

Fleur looked slightly ashamed, not realizing we had been walking for a while. "Of course, there's a nice comfortable couch in the sitting room." She grabbed my non-cane occupied hand and slowly led me to said comfy couch. I grunted as I practically fell onto the couch. "I'm sorry Harry. I should have realized it would be painful for you to walk too much." I really did not like seeing a frown on her face.

I waved off her concern, "It's fine. I enjoyed my tour." I said with a small smile, that slowly turned into a frown. "I just can't help but think about what happened. If I could have somehow avoided killing those men."

"Harry," Fleur looked me straight in the eyes, lacking the smile I really liked seeing on her face, "there was nothing else you could have done. In fact, I don't think you understand how impressed everyone is with you that you even survived." She explained. "You didn't have the luxury of worrying about how to fight them."

Slightly tearing up like an idiot, I looked away. "I know," I basically whispered, "but I didn't mean to kill them."

I felt a few tears fall from my eyes so I wiped them away with the sleeve of my robe before she could see. I hadn't cried in years, what the hell was wrong with me. I heard a sniff to my left and turned to see Fleur crying as well. I felt awful, that is definitely one thing I never wanted to see, a crying Fleur. I slowly went to wipe her tears with my thumb, but she flinched as soon as I touched her. "Ah, I'm so sorry." I felt like an idiot. Why did I do that? I stood as quickly as I could. "I'm going to go lie down." I was too embarrassed to look at her. She grabbed my hand as I started to walk away, but I still didn't look.

"Non!" she yelled, and I jumped, not expecting it. "_Please_," the pleading in her voice made me instantly turn my head to look at her, "I was only surprised."

I slowly sat back down next to her. "Okay…" Looking closely I noticed the faint bags under her eyes. She looked like she hadn't got much sleep the night before. "Are _you_ okay?" I asked her with emphasis.

Now she had another look I never wanted to see on this angel's face, the cutest grimace I've ever seen. I couldn't help but think about how easy she was to read. "Not really, no. I haven't been able to sleep, I'm having nightmares. I keep waking up in that forest," she looked at me with an incredibly intense gaze that drew me in, "seeing you dead against that tree. I don't know why, everyone's okay but I wake up so scared."

I really didn't know what to say. I wasn't expecting her to truthfully answer me to be honest and I was at a loss for words. So, I said nothing and just looked at her, she looked exhausted. I gathered my courage, "This couch is, like you said, very comfortable. I'll stay here if you want to get some sleep." I said softly, so much for my courage.

A very loud silence followed. My face was burning, and I felt like an idiot, I don't know why I didn't think that one through. "Okay." I heard her whisper, I turned to face her to see her looking away. I was sure I imagined a slight blush on her face. My heart jumped to my throat as she laid her head on my shoulder. I was dreaming, it was the only explanation. Being near her almost seemed to take my worries away, it was liberating. After a few minutes I noticed her breathing even out. Exhausted, I leaned my head into hers softly trying not to wake her. After she didn't move, I yawned and slipped into oblivion.

* * *

The feel of fingers running through my hair was comforting and my pillow was awfully warm. I snuggled into it and let out an involuntary purr of contentment, the fingers gliding through my hair immediately stopped. I almost moaned in dissatisfaction before I realized whoever had been talking suddenly stopped. Confused, I opened my eyes meeting two emerald green orbs, looking a little frightened. My head was laying in Harry's lap and he had been playing with my hair.

His face turned crimson and he looked away, "S-sorry…" he stammered. I heard a light laughter and looked in that direction to see Mama sitting in the chair across from the couch, holding Gabrielle. I fought the blush threatening to break out on my face and slowly sat up. I couldn't look at either of them.

"It's o-okay." My gods, I sounded like a fifteen-year-old girl. "You did nothing wrong." That was embarrassing, I needed to make a recovery. I looked at Harry with a smirk on my face, "You're very comfortable, Harry." I joked. Success, that was the most he had blushed yet. Teasing him was fun.

Not five seconds after my comment Gabrielle jumped off of Mama and barreled right into Harry.

"Oof!" She looked up at an incredibly confused Harry while smiling and speaking rapid fire French. I couldn't help but laugh as Mama admonished her.

"How was your nap?" Mama turned and questioned me, eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Best sleep in three days." I answered. It was the truth; my sleep had been beyond restless and bordering into insomnia. It seemed every time I closed my eyes, it was just a replay of that dreadful forest. I looked to Harry, "Thank you." I said, inserting as much gratitude into those two words as I could.

"O-of course, anytime." He said, visibly wincing as he did. He shot a nervous glance over to my mother, "I didn't mean…"

"Oh?" I covered my mouth with my hand as I laughed, "Anytime you say? I may have to take you up on that…" I trailed off. Mama and I laughed as he squirmed around on the couch uncomfortably. _"Gabrielle, give him some space." _I said to my sister.

"Gabrielle, come." Mama took her hand and started leading her away, then she looked over to Harry. "Gabriel should be back soon; he was speaking with Dumbledore about something. It was nice meeting you Harry. Fleur, we will speak later." She added with a wink in my direction.

"Your mum is nice."

That statement caused me to raise an eyebrow, "Is that so? What were you two talking about?" I asked suspiciously, "And how long was I asleep?" I added.

"Only a couple hours, and nothing important." He grinned.

"Fine, don't tell me." I huffed and looked away, pretending to be offended. I glanced back a second later to see if it worked. It did.

"Sorry. It really was nothing important, I swear." He sounded so flustered; it was rather cute.

"I was only joking. Come, let's go get some food before father gets here with Dumbledore." I stood and helped him up. He still seemed to be in quite a bit of pain and there was no way I helped by laying on him. I told him to sit down while I found something to cook from the cupboard. I was never really that great at cooking, but he didn't know that.

"How does spaghetti sound?" I asked, already getting out the ingredients. It was really the only thing I could make reliably.

"Delicious. Let me help." He said, beginning to stand up.

I pushed him back down into the chair, "Non, let me cook. To show my thanks." I added. He relented and we made small talk as I filled my way through cooking the pasta. After I finished, I passed out the bowls and sat down. He dug in immediately.

"Delicious." He smiled and I felt my stomach do a little flip, it was my first time cooking for someone and I was pleased he liked it. I ate a mouthful a second later. The noodles were severely undercooked and I used to much salt, he lied.

I hid a smile as I watched him eat his much too salty and much too crunchy spaghetti. "You don't have to eat it." I said, pushing my bowl forward.

He looked at me confused, "Why? It's good."

I laughed; I couldn't help it. He looked away sheepishly and whispered something quietly. "What was that?" I asked.

"I've never had a girl cook for me before." I was a little surprised. Harry Potter hasn't ever eaten a girl's cooking? I felt a slight triumphant twinge in my chest.

Why was is so hard not to blush? "I can cook again tomorrow if you want."

"I'd like that." He smiled and I had to look to the side.

There was a flash of green and the sound of someone stepping from the floo off towards the den. Harry and I watched as Dumbledore and father walked into the kitchen, both looking grave.

"Hello, Harry." The Headmaster said. "Ms. Delacour." He nodded to me.

"Hello Professor." We both replied.

Harry noticed the look on both of their faces. I was instantly on guard, there were only a few times I remembered this particular look on his face, none of them good. I looked over at Harry, he also looked nervous.

"Sir?" Harry asked, voice full of concern, "is everything alright?"

"How are you feeling, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, waving off Harry's question. The young man seemed even more confused at this.

"I'm fine, Professor. A little sore and annoyed with this cane, but I'm alive thanks to Mr. Delacour and Fleur." I felt flattered that he even added me in that statement, considering I was alive thanks to him.

"Indeed." Dumbledore replied, "You were both rather fortunate that you encountered each other when you did. I fear what may have happened to dear Fleur and Gabrielle if you had not." I could feel the ancient wizards gaze on me as I continued to look at Harry. Dumbledore turned to look back at Harry, "I'm truly glad you are safe Harry, but not all is well."

"W-what do you mean? What happened?" Harry had started to sound scared, and I was feeling scared enough for the both of us. Something awful had happened, I could feel it.

I saw a tear fall from Dumbledore eye; he looked every bit his age in this moment. "My boy, I'm afraid not everyone made it home safe." Another tear fell. I could tell Harry was getting frantic.

"No. _Who?!_" Harry was on his feet, cane forgotten, almost yelling at the clearly grieving wizard. I sat there frozen and Papa just stood, staring at the ground.

"Harry," the Headmaster's voice hitched, "I am so, so sorry."

I held my breath.

Harry _screamed_.


	3. Aftermath

**Disclaimer: Still don't own nothin'.**

* * *

**Chapter Three: Aftermath**

It was a chilly morning for the end of August, but the weather perfectly reflected my feelings. The funeral was a small affair, people milling about here and there. The cemetery was apparently over a century old, broken and decrepit tombstones littered the field. Hermione would have hated it here. Really, it was only family and friends. I couldn't help but feel everything was my fault. If only I hadn't gotten separated from our group, but then, what would have happened to Fleur and Gabrielle? It had been eating me up inside. So many 'what if's' or 'if I would have done this instead', I was drowning in self-doubt and I didn't think I would ever come up for air. Dumbledore stood to my left and Fleur to my right, along with her father, mother, and sister. We all sat in silence dressed in black, listening to the pastor ramble on about a life only the family really knew. Gabrielle whispered to her mother while the pastor was speaking. I don't think she truly knew what was happening.

The man stopped talking and it was time to say our final goodbyes. Standing in line to see the body felt surreal, like it should be happening to _anyone_ else. I was nervous and I had no idea what to say to her. Should I apologize? I had no idea what to ask her, but I knew what I had been asking myself.

_'Why?_' and '_Why me?' _I wallowed in self-pity and suppressed my tears for the millionth time in two days. It must have been obvious, because Fleur took my hand and whispered that it would be okay. That just made it unimaginably harder to control myself. An eternity later we finally made it to the casket, and in it, my best friend.

Hermione's skin was pale and dry, but her hair was far from the bushy mess that it had always been. She looked so peaceful, unencumbered by life, as if she had just fallen asleep and forgotten to wake up. Which was ridiculous, Hermione never forgot anything. A sudden fatal heart attack, the pastor said, was the cause of death. A heart attack at fourteen was unheard of, but her parents wanted a traditional Muggle funeral. I couldn't blame them; I would distance myself too.

Tortured for information before killed by Death Eaters. Ron was next on their list, but the red-robed Aurors got there first. _Death Eaters. _I ground my teeth and clenched my hands on the side of the casket. **_Voldemort_**. Everything always came back to him. My fury was palpable, and I tasted copper in my mouth. I swore to every God in existence that I would have my revenge.

Fleur placed her hand on my shoulder, I guess she could taste my anger. I focused on that hand, calming myself down as much as I could. My hand moved to brush a stray hair out of Hermione's face, then I leaned down and kissed her forehead. "I swear," I whispered to her, "I'll change this country for the better." I wiped a fallen tear from her face. "No matter _what_ I have to do." I walked away from her for the last time with a burning fury in my chest and revenge on my mind.

* * *

Fleur and I had grown closer over the few days before the funeral. She was about the only person I could talk to without lashing out, and when I did, she understood. Ron on the other hand, well, he hadn't even looked at me. He must be blaming me for Hermione's death. It was me they were looking for, and she wouldn't tell them anything. I won't lie, Ron's cold shoulder hurt and even most of his family seemed to be avoiding me. Fred and George came to offer their condolences along with Mr. Weasley but left swiftly after. Mrs. Weasley and Ginny were completely avoiding me. I guess they realized what being around me could mean for them, but so did I. I decided to end it before something worse could happen to them.

Tomorrow was September first and then it was off to Hogwarts, alone. Gabriel offered to drop me off at the Hogwarts Express and I had decided to take him up on his offer. Fleur started her final year at Beauxbatons tomorrow also, I was dreading being parted from her, but I knew it was for the best. Tonight, would probably be the last time I saw her, and the thought alone tore my insides to shreds.

At some point during the funeral Dumbledore pulled me to the side, apologizing again for his inability to keep us all safe. It was getting annoying, it wasn't his fault, and everyone knew it, but he seemed to take it as hard as I did. I was unsure if it was because she was his student or because he really liked her. I wasn't angry with Dumbledore, he wasn't omniscient, no matter how much people believed he was. He let me know that I would spend the last night before term with the Delacours and that he would see me at Hogwarts. He left shortly afterwards.

The funeral ended around noon and I attempted to tell Mr. and Mrs. Granger how sorry I was for their loss, but they wouldn't even acknowledge my existence. It hurt, but I understood. We decided not to stay for the wake, I didn't want to give her parents a living reminder about the cause of her death. Gabriel apparated us back to the British Ministry of Magic and we took the international floo back to his home. Picking myself up from the floor, I thanked Fleur's parents for the hospitality again and made my way to my borrowed room, falling face first onto the bed.

Three light knocks reverberated off my door, the sound penetrated the comfortable silence I had created. I grabbed a pillow, rolled over and placed it over my face, ignoring the world. I really didn't want to see anyone. Three more polite knocks.

"Harry?" I heard Fleur's soft voice through the door. "May I come in?" It pained me to do so, but I ignored it. I assumed the following silence caused her to leave. "Harry, please?" Damn it all, why would she want anything to do with me? I couldn't ignore her anymore, I had to tell her it was better to stay away.

"Come in." I croaked, my throat felt like a desert, as if I hadn't used it in days. Pillow still over my face, I heard my door open and Fleur's soft footfalls on the carpet. The bed shifted as she sat down and silence reigned supreme.

"Harry…" Her voice was soft and comforting and I reveled in it. I let out a muffled sob as I felt her fingers move through my hair. That simple gesture broke through my papier-mâché walls and I cried into the pillow while she stroked my hair. I wasn't sure exactly how long that lasted but I was spent afterwards. I could hear her sniffing off to my side and I didn't want to look. I moved the pillow off of my head and wiped my nose and eyes on my jacket. I sat up and felt her fingers slip through my hair a final time before she took her hand back. I chanced a look to my left and saw her red-rimmed eyes looking so incredibly sad. I wished I wouldn't have looked. "Feeling better?" she asked quietly.

"A little." I answered.

"I'm sorry." I rose an eyebrow in surprise. Why was she sorry? I noticed the tears building up in the corners of her eyes. "If I 'ad not been 'it with that cutting curse, I could 'ave run faster, and you wouldn't 'ave 'ad to 'elp save me." She put her head in her hands and sobbed, slipping into a surprising French accent. I was taken aback with horror. Had she been feeling that way this entire time? I was ashamed that I had no idea, wallowing like a child and snapping at people while she had been bottling up this guilt. Merlin, I hated myself.

I took a chance and slowly pulled her into a hug. Fleur quickly grabbed my shirt and pulled her face into my chest, and then she cried as I played with her hair, returning the favor. "It's not your fault." I choked out, which only caused her to sob even harder. I felt like my heart was breaking as my eyes teared up again.

She just kept whispering something in what I assumed was French and I stayed silent, until she finished. I wanted desperately to push her away from me, I couldn't go through this again if it was her in that casket. The closer she stayed to me, the closer she was to death. Her cries had subsided, and she was just holding her forehead to my chest. I slowly pushed her as I outstretched my arms, fully intending to tell her that she should stay away for her own good. Fleur sniffed and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. She looked up and our eyes met, both red from crying, faces only inches apart. The words on the tip of my tongue as time seemed frozen. My lips slightly parted, milliseconds from telling her.

I leaned in and kissed her.

That wasn't what I had planned at all. I didn't know what came over me; one moment planning on telling her she should leave and never speak to me again and the next, my lips on hers. I never imagined my first kiss to be so salty. I began to end the kiss, regretting being born.

Then she kissed me back.

* * *

My parting with the Delacour family was bittersweet. Fleur and I promised to write one another often, I was secretly devastated I had to leave so soon. For once, I wished that the summer would last forever. I sat alone in a compartment on the train and stared blankly out of the window, wondering how I was going to survive the year without my two best friends. I heard the compartment door slide open and my head snapped up, hoping amongst hope that I would see a bushy haired brunette standing there with a book in her hands.

It wasn't.

"Ron?" He was the last person I had expected to come see me. The redhead stared at me with an unexpected determination. He shut the compartment door and sat down directly across from me, leaned on his knees with his elbows, took a deep breath, and _sighed_. I was lost, no idea what was going on.

"Harry." He stared at me and I stared back. "Hermione's dead."

I looked away, "Y-yeah."

"Because of **_Voldemort_**."

I stood up and looked at him in shock. Ron had _growled_ Voldemort's name, no stuttering, and with such a deep loathing I felt the hairs on my arms stand up.

Ron just continued to stare at me and I could only gape back, mouth slightly open. "It isn't _fair_!" He exclaimed suddenly, startling me into sitting back down. "It should have been me."

"Mate…" I was at a loss for words. He wasn't blaming me. He was blaming _Voldemort_ and saying it should have been him who died.

"She protected me," Ron whispered so quietly I almost missed it, "and I could only sit there and **_watch_**!" He screamed the final word. He was crying now and he was blaming himself for Hermione's death.

_I've been so self-centered._ First ignoring Fleur's feelings of guilt and now Ron. I thought he had been avoiding me this whole time, but maybe it was _me_ avoiding _him_. I pulled Ron into the biggest hug I'd ever had, trying to will his guilt away. We stayed like that for a few seconds and then both sat back down, trying to center ourselves.

"The Death Eaters are scum Harry." Ron said dejectedly. "They need to go." He looked up and his next statement blew my mind. "The Ministry is scum Harry, it needs to go."

"What?" I asked in bewilderment. _What was I hearing?_

"Some people, not as a whole." Ron backpedaled. "It was Malfoy." He said through gritted teeth. "I recognized his voice."

Those words lit an all consuming fire in my chest. I could feel the blood rushing to my head as my teeth threatened to break from pressure. _Of course it was_. That little fool was the bane of my existence and now his Death Eater father was number two on my hit list.

The door slammed open and the sight of that blond hair and smug face caused me to almost lose it. My wand slid into my hand from the inside of my sleeve. The burning in my chest traveled up to my head like lava in my veins. I already struggled to hold back the feeling. It was tempting to give in and end this pest. Ron wasn't looking much better himself, his grip on his wand hard enough to crack it.

"Well look what we have here," the blond haired ponce spat, "Potter and Weasley." Merlin, the sound of his voice was going to make me lose it. I needed to calm down before it was too late. Draco looked around with a sneer, "and where's your little Mudbl—" _Too late. _I stood and threw my arm up, banishing him through the door, into the opposite compartment. He smashed into the ground taking the door with him and I could hear girls screaming. I let the fury take me.

_I'm going to kill him._

It was liberating, the feeling of power my anger gave me. The lava that flooded my veins turned to ice and I stepped slowly through my compartments open door, my wand in my grasp and aimed directly the bastard's heart. "Very unslytherin of you Draco, goading me without your apes."

_It would be so easy._

I felt myself smile and Draco started quickly pushing himself backwards with his legs while he fumbled for his wand. Four younger girls ran from the compartment with terrified expressions and I felt my anger slip. Draco raised his wand and I hit him with a disarming charm before he could mutter a spell. The red spell blew him back into the wall and his wand into my outstretched left hand, my anger returned. "This is your fault Malfoy." My voice sounded so far away. The spell to freeze his blood on the tip of my tongue. Draco had the most hilarious expression on his face, a mixture of confusion and fear.

_Freeze his blood? _A small whisper in the back of my mind spoke up. I didn't know the spell for that.

The blood dripping down Draco's head and onto the floor seemed to piss me off more. "Potter, stop!" The trepidation in his voice was music to my ears.

_This must have been the same position Hermione was in._

My smile froze and I stopped dead in my tracks, my sanity rushing back to me. I was about to murder Malfoy. All of my anger turned into fear. I could hear yelling, but everything was muffled. I'm no better than those Death Eaters, ready to murder a child because of his words.

"_Stupefy!_" was the last thing I heard before the darkness took me.

* * *

My final year at Beauxbatons had started off interesting enough. As soon as we sat down in the Grand Hall, we were informed about the Triwizard Tournament. We were traveling to Hogwarts! My parting with Harry had been awkward, but I was excited to see him again. I wasn't sure exactly what I felt for Harry. He was very soothing to be around and his ability to not drool around me was a bonus, but he was young. Then again, Papa was five years older when he met Mama, so it definitely wasn't anything unheard of.

I lost myself in thought, pushing the food around my plate while my best friend Emilie rambled on next to me. She had been pretty much my only friend for years. Brown hair tied into a ponytail, her bangs framing her heart shaped face, she was one of the more attractive girls in the school. Perhaps that was what bonded them, others thinking they would steal their men.

"Fleur, are you listening?" Emilie asked, pointing her fork at me.

"Of course." I answered.

"Well, what did I say?" she asked, her deep brown eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"_Everything._" I grumbled, stabbing my fork into my potatoes with a gusto. The Triwizard Tournament, eternal glory and a thousand galleons. I would love the recognition and showing everyone that I wasn't just a pretty face. Spending a year in Britain also didn't appeal to me anymore, with masked men running around causing panic and the blatant bigotry, but I would get to spend the year with Harry. Even if I wasn't chosen, it wouldn't be a waste of a trip. With that thought my mood improved and I started to actually eat my food.

"Amazing." Emilie said in awe.

I looked over back to my friend. She was looking at me with an expression of disbelief. "What?" I asked.

"I've never seen your expression change from grumpy to content so quick since I've known you." She still sounded amazed, "What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing." I quickly lied, looking away.

"Was it a boy?" Emilie asked with an innocent smile. I felt the heat rush to my face, damn. She dropped her fork onto her plate with a loud clang. "Oh my god. Fleur Delacour, 'Miss no-one's-good-enough'. Smiling over a boy. _Spill!_" She commanded. _Why was she so loud?!_

_"Later." _I hissed, glaring at the curious faces around us.

The brunette raised her hands in surrender, "Fine, fine," she relented. I continued to glare at her as she picked her fork back up and started eating again, shaking her head.

We finished eating and left for our dorms after Madame Maxime did her typical welcoming feast speech. Immediately Emilie jumped on my bed, back resting on the headboard holding her knees with her arms. "_Now_ spill," she smiled again. I slowly made my way to my trunk ignoring the curious looks from my other four roommates. I leisurely found my evening wear and pulled it out, trying not to laugh at my friends gradually annoyed expression. I started to walk to the conjoined washroom with my clothes.

"Fleur!" she yelled from behind me. I waved over my shoulder and laughed as I walked in and changed. Emilie was glaring at me with a pout on her face when I emerged. I sat at the foot of my bed, legs crossed, and smiled at her quietly. Her eye twitched as she threw her hands up, exasperated. "Well?!" she exclaimed.

I laughed and closed my curtains, silencing them for good measure. "What do you want to know?" I asked.

It twitched again, "The boy_._" She said.

I feigned confusion, "What boy?"

Her eyes went wide and she stuttered, "T-the _boy!_"

"Oh, him." I said, casually glancing at my nails, "What about him?" Her expression was priceless.

"Fleur! You're killing me. Who is he?" she asked while pulling at her bangs with both hands.

"Ah. Why didn't you just ask?" I stopped looking at my nails, "Harry Potter." I stated nonchalantly. Emilie leaned back and her expression changed from surprise to doubt.

"Very funny," she said, "can you be serious for a second?"

I smiled sadly, "I am." Her expression went immediately back to surprise.

"How did _that_ happen?" she asked incredulously, "_When _did that happen?" I grimaced and couldn't help but think about that horrible forest and Harry's broken body. The dreams sometimes still kept me up at night.

"He saved Gabrielle and me from Death Eaters." I said simply.

"What?" she was clearly confused, "Isn't he like fourteen? What did he do?"

I stared off into space as I recalled everything, "He was incredible. The way he fought was so…." I struggled to find the right word. I looked up; Emilie was fixated on my every word. "_Not_ like a fourteen-year-old." I really didn't know how else to describe it. "Four Death Eaters. Alone." I explained what had happened in as much detail as I could stomach.

"That's amazing." Emilie was in awe and I couldn't blame her; I could still hardly believe it myself. The experiences he must have had to be able to fight like that. "He saved you and now you're obsessed with him? That seems a little…" she trailed off.

I scoffed, offended. "_Of course not!"_ Did she really think me that easy? "That was only how I met him." I shifted on the bed to get more comfortable, "He stayed at my home for the next week or so." I finished.

That got her attention, "Oh?" she said, eyebrows raised.

"But he was unconscious for the first three." I added quickly. I blushed thinking about the three days I watched him sleeping peacefully. Then blushed harder when I thought about the rest of the week. I looked into Emilie's eyes, "We connected. I think." I said uncertainly.

"You think?"

"He k-kissed me." Damn it all, it was getting hot.

The brunettes mouth fell open, "Wasn't that your first?"

"Yes."

"Did you want him to kiss you?" she asked as she leaned forward.

"Yes." I whispered.

She squealed. "How was it? Tell me."

I furrowed my brows, trying to remember the kiss. "Wet." I stated simply. "We had just gotten back from his best friends funeral." I looked down ashamed with myself, "We had been crying."

Emilie's face fell, "That's so sad. What happened?"

"She was tortured for information about him and then killed when she wouldn't talk." I growled and grit my teeth at the thought; I didn't know what I would do if Emilie was just killed like that. She looked as if she was about to cry. "Let's not talk about it anymore." I said and unsilenced the curtains. "I'm tired."

Emilie opened the curtains, "Alright, goodnight Fleur." She said with an understanding smile as she walked to her own bed. I moved to the top of my bed and ruffled my pillows angrily. I really wanted to talk to Harry. I wondered if he knew about the tournament yet. That sparked an idea and I grabbed a quill and some parchment from my trunk. I wrote him a letter telling him all about the tournament and how I would be coming with my best friend. After my letter I felt better already. I closed my curtains and went to sleep that night thinking about a green-eyed wizard and how I would be back in Britain soon, able to see him again.


	4. Hell Has Frozen Over

**A/N: Quite a few interesting reactions to Hermione's death, but nothing I wasn't expecting. Sorry this one took so much longer to release. I've been quite busy. Though, it is about a thousand words longer. Hope you all enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Still don't own Harry Potter. I'm only writing this for fun.**

* * *

**Chapter Four: Hell has Frozen Over**

I sat in an uncomfortable chair in front of Dumbledore's desk with the wizard himself sitting behind, looking rather disappointed. I took a long look around the room at all of the different magical items littered around the room. It had been a while since I had taken a good look around. Fawkes stood on his perch to the Headmaster's left looking out the tower window while a new interesting item sat on his desk. It looked like a circular mirror attached to a vertical rod on each side, it spun slowly and made a very light humming noise as it did.

"Harry, I must say that I'm quite disappointed." Dumbledore said, lacking the usual grandfatherly tone in his voice. My head snapped from the mirror and right onto the Professor. "Your actions against young Malfoy on the train were unacceptable." He put his elbows on his cluttered desk and intertwined his fingers, leaning his chin on them. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

I looked back to the humming machine tapping my cane anxiously on my left leg. "I'm sorry sir, he just made me so mad."

"Harry," Dumbledore said, "you cannot just attack students when you are upset."

I tapped my cane a little harder, still staring at the mesmerizing mirror. "I know, sir. I'm sorry." I started to get angry just thinking about it. "Ron told me about Malfoy's dad and I got angry." The cane was tapping even harder now. "Then he came into the compartment and said what he said." I grit my teeth as I explained.

I could feel the bubble of hate stewing in my chest and I just got angrier. The humming was growing louder. "He started calling her a Mudblood and I just lost it." Merlin, just retelling the story made me so mad. The cane started to hurt, but if I didn't do something I would explode.

Dumbledore's eyes moved from me to the humming mirror and back again. A light trepidation in his eyes. "Harry, calm d—" He started to say before I cut him off.

My eyes moved from the mirror to the Headmaster. "I banished him through the door," I said, "but I wanted to do so much more. He deserves it." I finished and stood up suddenly, supporting myself on my cane. The humming turned into a soft ringing noise as the anger grew inside of me.

Professor Dumbledore leaned back into his chair and stared at the ringing mirror, dumbfounded. Fawkes flew from his perch and landed on the old man's shoulder with a quiet trill.

"I had him at my mercy, just like his father had Hermione." I continued while my blood began to boil and rush to my head. The mirror was spinning so quickly it was wailing. The window that looked out onto the grounds cracked and I could feel the magic flowing through my body, begging to be unleashed.

And then it slowly faded away. The haze was lifted and the screeching became a light humming again. Dumbledore was standing, his wand pointed to the floor. "Harry, please sit." The pleading in his voice caused me to immediately drop myself into the chair, exhausted.

"What did you do?" I pushed my hand against my scar, trying to lessen the sharp pain I felt.

The Professor sat back down in his chair sliding his wand back into his sleeve. He was staring at me intensely with wide eyes. "Just a simple calming charm." He explained. He noticed me holding my head, "Does your scar hurt?" he asked.

I removed my hand, "A little." I said, losing my patience with this conversation. "I'm just tired sir, it's been a long week." I said while leaning back in the chair and staring at the ceiling.

The Headmaster's eyes softened at this, "I understand, and again, I'm sorry Harry." He stood and started to walk to the office door, clearly wanting to say more. His eyes darted momentarily to the humming mirror. I stood and followed him. Dumbledore opened the door and stopped. "I will need you to, of course, apologize to Mr. Malfoy."

Over my dead body.

"Of course. Goodnight Professor."

"Goodnight, Harry."

* * *

My cane tapped against the stone as I walked towards Gryffindor tower lost in thought. What the hell was that obnoxious mirror and Dumbledore's odd reaction to it? Why was I suddenly getting so mad, so quickly? I felt like I was losing myself and it terrified me. Not to mention the whispers and gazes that followed me throughout the castle. Dumbledore mentioned Hermione's unfortunate death to the students during the feast, and since then it's been nothing but second year all over again. Instead of fear, it's been pity.

Ron has been getting as worked up about it as I have. The looks of fear I could handle, at least people left me alone. Now I had to deal with people coming up to me every ten minutes giving me their condolences. Merlin, why didn't they understand we didn't want to think about it anymore and they just kept reminding us over and over again.

The tapping of my cane got progressively louder as I walked and thought. I didn't need their pity, it changed nothing. What I needed was power. The power to change this corrupted country. The ministry was a joke, Ron was right and I had the beginnings of a plan to change it. It would be hard, and a lot of things would have to go right for it to work, but I had confidence in Ron to go along with it.

With that thought I upped my pace and made my way to the dormitories, a new goal in mind.

* * *

Walking into the common room, I was surprised to see so little people around. There was a couple sitting on the couch, basking in the heat from the fireplace even though it was the beginning of September and not at all cool outside. There were also a few younger years grouped up around the room. I used a quick Tempus to see the time.

It was after eight, I had been in Dumbledore's office for over an hour. I snuck my way past and up the stairs towards the fourth-year dorm. Eyes snapped to me as I walked in, but quickly looked away after I meet their eyes. No one said anything other than Ron.

He walked up to me and clapped me on the shoulder, "Everything alright, mate?"

"No," I admitted, avoiding his eyes, "but we can talk about that tomorrow."

His eyes shone with curiosity, but he acquiesced, removing his hand from my shoulder. I made my way over to my bed and sat down, Ron followed and sat next to me. "What did the Headmaster want?" he asked.

"He wanted to talk to me about what happened on the train," I sighed, "and then apologize to Malfoy." I finished and kicked my trunk.

Ron's eyebrows furrowed in anger, "He wants you to say sorry to that bloody git? I'll show him sorry." Ron continued. "I'll show him how sorry I am," he made a thrusting motion with his arm, "after I shove my wand up his arse and fire of a Red—"

"Ron!" I yelled, doing my best Hermione impression, "language!"

We both laughed sadly and then sat in silence. Then Ron spoke up, "Sorry I stunned you Harry."

"I already told you, I'm glad you did." I looked at him, "You saved me from doing something I would have regret."

His eyes widened at that comment, "What does—"

"Tomorrow, Ron." I interrupted him.

Ron lifted his hands in surrender, "Okay, okay." He paused, "What do you think about the Triwizard Tournament?"

I looked out the window next to my bed in thought, "It's a waste of time." I turned back to Ron, "Eternal glory? A thousand galleons?" I chuckled, "What's the point? I have bigger things to think about now. Like revenge." I said the last bit staring into Ron's eyes.

He met my stare without flinching, "I agree. The galleons would have been nice, but I'd trade all the money in Gringotts for my friend back."

We both lost ourselves in thought for a moment. "We need to get stronger Ron, or we are going to die." I said bluntly. Ron just sat and started at the floor, nodding his head slowly. "Let's meet in an unused classroom tomorrow and talk." I said as I stood up to get changed into my sleep wear. Ron said nothing, but stood up to get changed himself.

"Goodnight, Ron." I said as I closed my curtains.

Ron didn't respond.

* * *

I sat next to Ron in Charms, our first class of the year, dazed and exhausted. We were learning about the summoning charm. Which I had already mastered, thanks to Professor Lupin. I watched as Ron struggled to summon his pillow from across the room.

Last night's nightmare and Fleur's letter still weighed on my mind. Apparently, Fleur was coming to Hogwarts for the Tournament on October 30th, along with her best friend. I looked forward to, but also dreaded her arrival. I longed to see her, sometimes it seemed like her presence took away the raging hate that lurked within my gut ever since Hermione's death. But at the same time, I wanted her far away from me.

The thought alone of her dying brought tears to my eyes. I had only known her for a week, but I felt her to be one of the two people closest to me. I felt a disturbing thought slip to the front of my mind: I would tear down the Wizarding World, stone by stone if anything happened to them.

* * *

Ron and I walked to our next class, almost mechanically. The only sounds were the clacking of my cane on the hard stone and the gritting of our teeth, sick of the empty sympathy from classmates we hardly knew. I swore I was going to hit the next person to talk to me over the head with my cane. "Potter." That voice stopped us in our tracks. Oh, impeccable timing.

We turned around to see Malfoy standing alone in the middle of the corridor. "Malfoy," I hissed, "what do you want?" I could see Ron struggling to hold himself back from throttling the blond ponce.

Malfoy looked uncomfortable, eyes anywhere but on ours. I've never seen him act so…nervous. "What happened," He suddenly spouted, "to Granger?"

I saw Ron's face slowly turn red with anger, "You bloody bastard!" He lunged, completely forgetting about his wand. I grabbed Ron by his shoulders and pulled him back. I tried to hold back my own anger.

"Ron, calm down!" I glared over at Malfoy, trying to project every iota of hate in my gaze, "Why don't you ask your father, Malfoy?"

Draco took a step back, a confused look on his face. "What does my father have to do with this, Potter?" I opened my mouth to respond but was beat to the punch by Ron.

"Your father killed her, you bloody wanker! Don't pretend like you didn't know!" Ron all but screamed in anger, "I'm sure you both had a nice, long laugh about it too. Him gloating about how he tortured and then killed her!"

The horrified expression on Malfoy's face dumbfounded me. Did he really not know? I made to speak, but was interrupted again.

"Don't lie, Weasley!" Draco's voice cracked, "My father has nothing to do with this!" The desperation in his voice caught my interest. The blond boy then spun around and practically ran off.

Ron threw himself out of my grip and stormed off in the opposite direction. I took one more glance towards Draco, then turned and ran to catch up to Ron.

* * *

After a long day of classes, I drug Ron to an abandoned classroom on the third-floor corridor so that we could talk. After we walked in, I took a moment to look around. The classroom was rectangular with a single window looking out towards the grounds. A large blackboard covered the entirety of one wall. A few desks and chairs littered the room also.

I walked over to the window and looked to see Hagrid's hut to the far left and the Black Lake to the far right, with a stretch of green in between the two. I could also see the forbidden forest stretching off towards the horizon. I turned around to see Ron standing in the middle of the room, looking at me expectantly. Grabbing two chairs and setting them across from each other, I motioned for Ron to sit.

He sat down wordlessly as I slipped my wand from my wrist holster and placed a few privacy charms Professor Lupin taught me on the door. I then sat down opposite Ron to start our conversation.

I wasn't sure where to start, to be honest, but the thing that made me the most curious was the confrontation with Malfoy. I opened my mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Ron, again. My eye twitched and I hoped this wasn't going to become a habit.

"Malfoy was acting strange today, wasn't he?"

It seemed we were thinking along the same lines. "Yes, he was acting rather odd." I looked over towards the window. "Do you think that maybe he didn't know what happened?"

Ron set his elbows on his knees and sighed, "I've been thinking about it all day. I'm not sure he could have faked that reaction."

I nodded to myself, "My question is why the reaction? You'd think he'd gloat about it. I mean, remember when Mrs. Norris was petrified?"

Ron chuckled and nodded, "You'll be next, Mudbloods!" he said in the worst imitation of Malfoy I think he could do.

I laughed along with him, "So what do you think was up with that?" I asked.

Ron sat back up and leaned back into his chair, "I'm not sure to be honest. It was a strange reaction, for sure."

I hummed to myself for a moment, thinking about what it could possibly mean. "Let's leave that topic for later. We need to talk about training." I said snapping out of my thoughts.

"You're right. We need to get better Harry, I need to get better." I could see the emotion rolling in Ron's eyes as he said the last part.

I slipped my wand into my hand and rolled it around as I thought. "You know Professor Lupin taught me a lot last year, but that won't be enough. I thought I was going to die at the World Cup, and I would have if Fleur hadn't saved me." I couldn't control a shudder as the memories threatened to overtake me.

Ron raised an eyebrow at my statement, "But you took out like four Death Eaters, pretty much by yourself!"

"They weren't even real Death Eaters!" I exclaimed, running my hand through my hair. "Well at least three of them, the one that got me was marked. The other three were just drunk idiots, looking to scare some people." I looked down dejected, "I wouldn't have lasted a minute against four real Death Eaters."

Ron looked sadly out the window. Then, he looked at me with a smile on his face. "What about Sirius?"

"What about him?" I asked, confused.

"He can train us!"

I leaned back and furrowed my brows in thought. Could he?

No, he could be caught.

"No way, Ron. I don't want him getting caught." I stopped that idea in its tracks. I couldn't afford to lose him.

Ron closed his eyes and sighed again, "Yeah, you're right. Have you heard from him at least?" he asked, curious.

"No," I said as I scratched an itch on my head, "he's on the run. Probably not a lot of chances to send an owl."

"That's true," Ron said as he nodded his head. I wasn't going to tell him how worried I was that I hadn't heard from Sirius yet. Surely, he would have had time to send at least one owl. I forced the doubt from my mind. I'm sure he's fine.

"For now," I said, changing the subject, "we can use the cloak to sneak into the forbidden section and practice in this classroom."

It had started to get dark, so after we made our tentative plan to train, we left the classroom to head back to our dorms, the rhythmic tapping of my cane echoing throughout the empty corridors.

* * *

Time marched on and before I realized, it was time for the Beauxbaton and Durmstrang students to arrive. The last two months had been hell, but at least I no longer needed my cane. Nightmares plagued my sleep and I could feel my health declining. I had not had a decent night's sleep since the time I spent in France, and it was starting to gnaw away at my sanity. The time not spent fitfully sleeping or going to class, was spent in the third-floor classroom training with Ron.

The training was going well enough, we had both expanded our spell repertoire and worked on our dueling skills. I had yet to lose to Ron, but we could both feel the progress that was being made. I found a few books in the restricted section that held questionable spells, but the main thing I was looking for were counter curses to as much dark magic as I could find. How were we to fight against people throwing spells that we couldn't recognize, let alone counter? We had been working on transfiguration during combat also, and pretty much everything else we could think of, but we were running out of things to teach ourselves. We desperately needed a teacher but wasn't sure who we could possibly ask.

Ron and I had made ourselves scarce, and the student population knew it. Rumors went around about how we were leaving the castle in the evenings and doing Merlin knows what. Our grades rose, especially in Charms, Transfiguration, and Defense. Well, Defense for Ron, considering it was always my best subject. We destroyed the classroom we used to practice in practically every evening, then repaired the damage and started over the next day. The only time we took off was on Sunday, and that was usually spent in the library.

Once Hermione died, a new Ron was born. No longer was he lazy and unmotivated, wanting nothing more than to quietly slide through classes being average. Now he was driven. I was convinced that if he were to look into the Mirror of Erised now, his reflection would show him hovering over a very dead Malfoy Senior. Speaking of Malfoy's, Draco's absence had definitely been noted. The only time we saw him was in class and his usual taunts and jeers were nowhere to be seen. In fact, his grades seemed to be slipping and he looked as bad as I did. Even Snape had taken notice and kept him after class, more than once.

Our new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody was an interesting addition also. The paranoid Professor had a knack for showing up randomly shouting, "CONSTANT VIGILANCE!", any chance he could get. The most curious thing about him was his magical eye. It swirled around seemingly random in his head; it could see through my cloak and even the back of Moody's head.

I hadn't heard from Fleur since breakfast on the second day and I had been too busy to write her myself. I hoped she wasn't upset; I was almost desperate to see her. It was about nine in morning now; the delegations were scheduled to arrive around six o'clock in the evening and Professor Dumbledore wanted everyone outside ready to greet them when they got here. It was Sunday, so that gave us a little more time to train before we had to stand outside waiting. So, Ron and I decided to head to our classroom, after breakfast in the Great Hall.

* * *

I sat down on a conjured cushion in the corner of the classroom, skimming through a copy of Magick Moste Evile that was propped up on my legs. I found the book about a week ago in the restricted section and was almost sick reading about the effects of some of the curses in it. The only reason I still had the book, was the abundance of useful counter curses it held. I had practiced a majority of the spells in the book, so that I would recognize them, but it was much harder to practice the counters without someone to actually curse. Where was Malfoy when I needed him?

"Harry." I was lost in thought, eyes staring at the words in the book without reading, when Ron called my name.

"Yes, Ron?" I looked up at him, curious. He hadn't spoken in hours, he just sat staring out the window.

He looked at me and began to stand, "Let's duel." He grabbed his wand from his pocket and stepped to the side.

"Now?" I asked incredulously, "We only have an hour before everyone gets here." I stood up and flicked my wrist, wand snapping into my hand. Ron must have been thinking about this for a while, I could see the determination in his eyes. "I would like to avoid the hospital wing today, if possible." We had both been frequent visitors there for the last month as we focused more on fighting and less on reading. We had already had a conversation with Dumbledore when he met us in our beds, after a rather grueling duel between Ron and me. We promised not to take it too far, but we were determined to better ourselves.

"Yeah," Ron nodded. "I'd like to test myself again. Please, Harry?" Of course, I wasn't about to turn down a chance to duel, but I also didn't want to meet Fleur looking like I just returned from battle.

I sighed and nodded, getting into position. "Alright, but let's take it easy." I pulled a sickle out from my pocket. "Start when it hits the ground?"

Ron gave a quick nod and moved into his dueling stance. Turned sideways with his wand arm forward, pointing to the ground in front of him. I flipped the coin into the air and took my stance, or lack of stance to be accurate. Wand at my side, facing forward on the balls of my feet, ready to move. The coin hit the stone with a dull thud and spells flew.

Our opening salvo of stunners clashed in a shower if crimson sparks. I sent another stunner towards Ron and he dodged to the left firing his own at me. I cast a Protego and his spell fizzled away after impacting my shield. I banished one of the many desks at him, then transfigured the sickle on the ground into a rock and summoned it, while he was busy dodging the flying desk.

I shot another Stupefy towards where Ron would come out of his roll, then banished the rock I had summoned, making sure it was hidden behind my stunner. Ron barely put up a shield in time to block my first spell, but the rock passed straight through and hit him square in the stomach. He dropped with a grunt.

"Merlin, Harry." He slowly stood up and rubbed his stomach, "That hurt."

I lowered my wand back to my side. "I'm sorry, Ron." I mocked, "Would you like to give up?" He glared and growled at me, swinging his wand. A chair flew at me and I reduced it to splinters with a Reducto. Before I could react, Ron banished the broken pieces of wood directly at me. Not thinking, I attempted to transfigure the pieces into smoke, but only about half changed. The rest peppered me and I hissed in pain, a few pieces stuck into the arm that I had used to cover my face.

I dropped my arm and transfigured the splinters into water. Neither of us moved. There was a trickle of blood running down Ron's face and he was holding his stomach, breathing heavily. I looked down at myself and noticed my ruffled clothes and the holes in my sleeve. A small amount of blood dripped from my arm onto the floor. "Let's stop." I said as I conjured a bandage to wrap my arm. It wouldn't last long, but it was better than nothing.

I vanished the blood from the floor and started to repair the desks and chairs that we hadn't obliterated. Ron finally stood straight up, wiped the blood from his head and smiled. "I finally got you." He said, infinitely pleased with himself.

I chuckled and nodded. "Clever thinking, banishing the debris at me so quickly." I complimented; he was getting much better.

Ron sat down heavily in a chair, placing his wand back into his pocket, "It almost didn't work. How did you react fast enough to change it into smoke?"

I sat down next to him and leaned back into the chair, thinking. I realized that I never really thought about it, it was almost like instinct. "I'm not sure," I said honestly, "I just reacted."

He hummed in thought and then shook his head, as if dismissing a thought. He cast a quick Tempus and suddenly stood up. "Harry, we have to go now or we're going to be late." I slowly stood and followed him to the door, dispelling the charms on the way.

* * *

We had almost made it to the courtyard when an annoying voice came from behind me.

"Potter!"

You've gotta be joking.

I stopped and turned to see Malfoy walking towards us. I turned to look at Ron, but he had never stopped walking, deciding to ignore the git.

I let out a large sigh and turned back to the pain in my arse. "What do you want?" Draco looked even more awful up close. "Are you alright, Malfoy?" I asked with actual compassion in my voice. That seemed to throw him off as much as it did me. His pale skin clashed with his blonde hair and he had bags under his eyes from lack of sleep.

Malfoy took a second to compose himself and sneered, "Shut up, Potter. You're no beauty yourself." I stayed quiet and he shifted uncomfortably looking away, clearly wanting to say something.

I tapped my foot on the ground impatiently, "Merlin Malfoy. If you've got something to say, just bloody say it." I said, breaking the awkward silence.

He stopped fidgeting and actually looked at me. "It was father."

My breath hitched and I held my breath for a moment. "What?"

I could tell Draco was getting upset himself. "I owled him," he explained, "about a week after Weasley and you told me."

My eyes went wide, "He confirmed it, over owl?" There's no way they are that stupid.

Draco scoffed, "Of course not, Potter. I asked to see him because I had a question. Dumbledore let me floo home for a few hours."

"And then he confirmed it?" I asked, angry and impatient.

Malfoy ran his hand over his face, "No, not directly, at least. But his face when I mentioned that Dumbledore told us she had died." His expression darkened as he continued, "I just know it was him."

"Why do you even care, Malfoy?" I asked, after I got over my shock, "You hated her!"

He looked at me with a burning fury in his eyes, "I did not hate her!" He screamed with such vehemence, I took a step back. "Don't talk about what you don't understand, Potter!" he spat.

"W-what? I don't understand." I could only stutter.

What in the hell was happening?

Draco yelled at me again, "I don't care if you understand!" He ran a hand through his matted hair and turned around to walk off. "I just needed to be certain…" he finished quietly to himself.

I stood quietly in the middle of the corridor, beyond confused, as I watched Malfoy walk off.

What the fuck?


	5. Limbo

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long! I was working two jobs and had zero time to write anything. Reviews are helpful even if they are negative. I write for fun, but getting better is nice too. **

**I hope everyone enjoys!**

**Remember:_ I own nothing_.**

* * *

**Chapter Five: Limbo**

I arrived in the Great Hall after making my way through the halls, contemplating my unusual conversation with Malfoy. The way he had been acting was incredibly odd. After being told his father was responsible for Hermione's death, he had become a hermit; only being seen during class. It was almost as if…

I shivered. No, that couldn't be it. Making my way next to Ron on autopilot, his voice snapped me out of my thoughts as I sat down. "What did Malfoy want?"

Hesitating, I answered as honestly as I could. "No idea."

Ron only shrugged and turned his attention back to the head table as Dumbledore stood to make his speech about the tournament. I tuned out his voice and looked around, finally noticing the unfamiliar uniforms sitting with the Ravenclaws and Slytherins. It seemed that I had missed the other schools' arrivals during my leisurely walk through the halls.

Spotting the light blue uniform of the Beauxbatons students sitting with the Ravenclaws, I combed through the students looking for the pale blond hair of Fleur's. After a few seconds of searching, I saw her chatting with the girl next to her, a charming half smile on her face.

I suddenly became quite nervous realizing our surprising lack of communication. Was she angry with me for not writing or did she not even care to write herself? My mind wandered back to the kiss and I couldn't help but think it might have been a mistake. I quickly turned my head away before anyone saw me staring when I noticed that the food had already appeared.

I missed the entire speech, but I did see a large plain wooden goblet sitting in the middle of the hall in front of the staff table. The goblet itself was a little disappointing to be honest, I was expecting something a little more…grandiose. It was basically a meter-tall plain wooden goblet with a few unrecognizable carvings on the sides. Losing interest, I looked up at the staff table.

Sitting next to Snape was a pale goateed man in a maroon robe, similar to the students sitting with the Slytherins. I assumed that was the Durmstrang Headmaster. He was quietly whispering to a very disinterested Snape, who looked like he would rather be anywhere else.

Looking further down the table I saw a very large woman sitting next to Dumbledore, my eyebrows rose in shock. She had to be bigger than Hagrid, which I had believed impossible. The headmistress of Beauxbatons was the complete opposite from the majority of their delegation.

Shrugging my shoulders, I loaded my plate with as much food as I thought my dwindling appetite could take, which wasn't much.

"Harry!" Ron yelled and poked me with his fork.

"Ouch!" I yelled, flinching in pain, "What the hell Ron?" Rubbing my side, I kicked him in the shin.

"Dammit Harry." He grimaced, "I was just trying to get your attention. You wouldn't answer me." He put his fork down, surprising me immensely. "Are you okay mate? You were staring off into space."

Avoiding his gaze, I looked down and started picking at my food with my fork, "I'm just tired."

"Still having those nightmares?" Ron asked, the unbridled concern in his eyes warmed my soul. "Maybe we could ask Madam Pomfrey for some Dreamless Sleep." He added thoughtfully.

I waved him off, "It's not that bad. Besides, that can be extremely addictive in frequent doses." I added thoughtlessly.

Ron's eyebrows rose in surprise, "It can? That wouldn't be good." He was quiet for a second, "How did you know that?"

Looking at him in confusion, I answered. "We learned about it in Potions."

Ron looked a little nervous and leaned towards me a bit, "No we didn't mate. That's a sixth-year potion."

I opened my mouth to respond in the negative but caught myself before I could speak. Narrowing my eyes in thought, I realized that I didn't actually remember going over the Dreamless Sleep potion in class. Seeing my face Ron dropped the subject and decided to finish his plate.

A deep uneasiness permeated my soul. I felt as if I was losing sight of myself between the anger and the nightmares. The uncertainty of it all felt like a vice grip on my heart and I wasn't sure who I could trust to confide in. I had thought about taking to Fleur, but that just made me feel nervous. Ron was the only other person I really trusted, but if he knew the things I've been dreaming I'm not sure he could stand to look at me again. However, he had to know and contingencies had to be made; just in case. I continued pushing food around with my fork.

_What the hell is wrong with me?_

* * *

The walk back to the common room was a rather noisy one. The tournament was the only thing being discussed; the twins apparently had thought of a plan to trick the age line Dumbledore drew. It didn't work, but it was most entertaining to watch. Everyone surrounded the twins laughing at the knee-long beards that they had grown after getting blasted away from the goblet. Amused, we all laughed and joked at the red-heads expense when I heard my name called from behind.

"'Arry!" Everyone stopped in surprise and turned around to see an unearthly blond beauty jogging up to the group. She stopped a few feet from me and smiled, ignoring the stares from behind me. "I've been trying to find you."

A whistle filled the air and a hand fell on each shoulder as two bearded twins stood on either side of me. "Harry, you didn't tell us you knew such a beauty." The twin on the left said with a twinkle in his eye. The twin on the right just hummed, stroking his beard.

"You didn't ask." I simply said. Looking back to Fleur I smiled, "Hello Fleur. It's nice to see you again." Stepping forward I shook off the twins' hands. "Fleur, meet Fred and George." I gestured to the old men standing to my sides. "I'm still not sure which is which to be honest." I chuckled at the look on her face. "Fred and George, this is Fleur Delacour." She cutely curtsied and smiled.

"It's nice to meet you," Her smile was heavenly and I heard someone's breath hitch, "Harry has told me much about your pranks." She looked to the boy behind me, "You must me Ron, no?"

I looked behind me to see Ron slightly pink and glancing away. "Um, yeah, that's me. Nice to meet you." He said in almost a whisper. Everyone else just seemed to be frozen in place, with slightly glazed eyes. I clapped my hands twice, knocking them out of their stupor.

"Oho, Harry. Have you been talking us up?" Turning back around, the twin on the left lightly kissed Fleur's hand. "George, it's a pleasure."

The twin on the right took her hand afterwards, "Fred. Nice to meet you finally." Then they both turned around and clapped their hands in perfect synchrony, a loud smack filled the corridor. "Let's go folks, we have a party to plan." The twins led the rest of the party back towards the Gryffindor dorms.

Ron stood his ground and looked at me. "You going to be okay, Harry?"

I nodded and he turned around, walking to catch back up to the group. Turning back around I took the sight of Fleur standing there with her hands clasped behind her back, looking unexpectedly shy. "How are you?" Was the only thing I could think to say.

Fleur just smiled slightly, "I am well Harry, thank you." The concerned look in her eyes told me exactly how I looked. Eyes red and bags under my eyes from lack of sleep, slightly emaciated from not eating, and pale from a lack of sun exposure. "Are you alright, you look tired Harry."

Rubbing my eyes, I answered. "I'm alright, just haven't been feeling great." Waving off her concern I tried to take back the lead. "You look great Fleur." She really did, the blue robe didn't do much to hide her figure and her eyes were still an innocent bright blue.

Fleur blushed slightly, and waved me off. "Don't change the subject. I can tell something is wrong." She took a step forward and brushed something off my cheek. "You look exhausted Harry, I am worried. Have you not been sleeping?" The concern in her voice made my stomach churn in guilt.

"Just some nightmares. Nothing important, they will stop eventually." I wished she would talk about something else.

"About what happened?" She quietly asked. Looking back up at her I slightly nodded, accepting the easy escape she offered. The dreams I have been having were my darkest secret. The details would make her stomach sick and she would never look at me the same. "I have been having some dreams about that night also." She explained with a small smile. "But it always ends with you saving me again."

_Dammit, that's not fair._

The blood rushed to my face as I looked away, "I would do it again."

_I can't believe I said that._

Fleurs smile lit up the dark. "I know." She answered simply. "I have someone I want you to meet later." Changing the subject finally.

"Oh?" I asked. "Who?"

She leaned forward slightly, hands still clasped behind her back and winked. "It's a secret."

I couldn't help but laugh, "Okay. Tomorrow then?" I scratched my cheek with a finger, "After you are chosen as Champion." I added.

The smile hadn't left her face, "Alright, meet me in front of the lake after?"

"Won't you be having some sort of celebration afterwards?" I asked slightly confused.

She just waved me off and laughed, "I don't care, I would rather see you." Her face was tinted slightly pink. Merlin, she was making it hard to not care for her. I hid a frown and put a fake smile on my face.

"Alright. I will see you then." Pushing her away was going to be impossible, I still wasn't sure what I wanted to do.

Fleur winked again and turned around, waving her hand over her shoulder. "Au revoir, 'Arry." My eyes traveled to her swaying hips against my will. _Shit._

A sigh escaped my lips and I rubbed my eyes again. A Tempus showed me it was time to try and get some sleep again. Slowly walking back towards the dorm, I had an uncomfortable feeling that tonight wasn't going to be pleasant.

* * *

_The Potter Cottage was a surprisingly simple home situated in the middle of Godrics Hollow. The house itself was a cliché red brick with a white picket fence surrounding the front yard. I slowly passed through the Fidelus Ward, wand drawn, fully expecting an ambush. Peter was a cowardly rodent, but once a traitor, always a traitor._

_Gravel crackled under my boots as I carefully made my way to the front door. I was prepared to dismantle some wards, but none were to found. Stifling a laugh, I couldn't help but shake my head at the foolish wizards. Having a blind loyalty to that old goat Dumbledore and his ridiculous Fidelus._

_As I made my way past their front porch, I finally heard the father yelling. I seemed to have tripped a proximity ward of some kind, but no matter. Only one would be leaving tonight._

_I blew the front door off of the hinges and made my way into the house, ready to cast a shield if needed. James Potter was standing in front of the stairs with a disturbing smile plastered on his face, no wand in his hand. It was slightly disturbing and I felt an uneasy knot forming in my stomach when his smile grew feral._

_Something was wrong._

_I pushed the feeling down and took a quick glance around to see if we were alone; we were. "Voldemort." My eyes locked to the eldest Potter and my wand pointed to his chest._

_"James Potter," I returned, "where is the child?" My eyebrows rose when he actually responded._

_"Upstairs with Lily." His smile grew less feral and slightly gentler. Potter's hands moved to his pockets and my body tensed in anticipation, ready to kill. His hands never left his pockets. "Are you really going to murder a child?" He asked with one raised eyebrow. "Especially based on some ridiculous prophecy told by some nutjob?"_

_It was usually against my _very_ few principles to kill children, but I couldn't take the chance. My eyes narrowed and I tried and failed to cruelly smile. "I refuse to take the chance Potter. My future empire will not be threatened by a potential problem if I can get rid of it now." Taking a step forward, the tip of my wand glowed green. "Now, are you going to duel? Or simply die?"_

_A large sigh escaped Potters lips, "Is there a point? I couldn't take you if I wanted to." His head turned to look up the stairs, an unreadable look on his face. "But I wouldn't be much of a man if I didn't do my best to stop you now." His head turned back to me with a determined look on his face and his hands receded from his pockets, wand now in his hand. He raised his head as if to look at the sky, eyes closed._

_I would _never_ admit to being confused out loud, but I was. This was an interesting start to a duel if I've ever seen one. He finally looked down and opened his eyes, staring directly at me with an almost amused look. Then the most confusing word came from his mouth, "Boo."_

_Suddenly pain ripped through my left arm as a large wolf locked on to it. Raising a quick shield deflecting whatever curse Potter cast, I aimed my wand at the wolfs head and blasted it off with a Reducto. Anger coursed through my veins like acid, begging to be released and I conceded. How dare this ant harm me, and with such a trick. How long had that wolf sat disillusioned in the corner of the room? His nonchalant acting was superb, I had to admit, but it ended here._

_A bright green light blew up my peripheral and I instinctively threw their couch into the way of the curse and returned my own killing curse towards the dark-haired wizard. "Such Dark Magic Potter. What would Dumbledore think?" I laughed and blocked a withering curse, it seemed Dumbledore's most trusted Light family wasn't so Light after all. There was a lull in our duel as we stood across from each other. He was still standing in front of the stairs like an unwavering guard._

_"Magic is Magic." A surprising response came from his lips. My eyes widened and I almost considered trying to recruit him on the spot, but the thought passed quickly._

_"I see." Both our wands raised at the same time, bright blue _Reductos_ colliding in between us. Plaster blew off from the ceiling and carpet was ripped from the floor as the two spells impacted. We both took a step back as the wave of magic blew into us. My wand was raised as my back foot hit the ground, a blood freezer flying towards where Potter was last standing. His form was hidden behind the residual magic from the colliding spells. The bright red flash of a stunner flew at me from the floor. Reflecting the spell, I frowned in disappointment._

_"_Expulso_." My blasting curse exploded directly in front of Potter, throwing him into the wall. He struggled to get up, sitting on the floor, he pushed his upper body up and leaned back into the wall. Potter's left arm was visibly broken and his glasses hung from one ear, missing a lens with another cracked. He raised his wand and I simply disarmed him and threw his wand to the side._

_"This would have been much more enjoyable if you would have actually moved." Taunting him, he responded with a laugh._

_"I couldn't let you up these stairs." Blood dripped from his hairline down his nose and onto his lips. He smiled, blood outlined his teeth and dripped from his mouth. Hazel eyes bored into me and nothing else was said._

_"A pity." I responded glancing towards the stairs, my eyes moved back to the eldest Potter. "I will make it quick." My killing curse hit him in the chest and the slumped forward as his body slowly fell to the side, in front of the stairs. Stepping over his body, I slowly made my way up to the next floor with my wand at the ready. Pictures of the small family lined the walls in the hallway leading to the nursery. Ignoring them I continued on, stopping a few steps away from the nursery door. A shiver moved up my spine and I felt the ambient magic coming from the room. The magic felt ominous and I slightly hesitated moving forward, but I had been here for too long. Impatiently my blasting curse splintered the door and I walked through the empty frame._

_A red-headed woman determinedly stood in between the crib and I, emerald eyes staring into whatever was left of my soul. "Move aside woman. All I want is the child."_

_"Please," she begged, "he's only a baby."_

_Ignoring her I swiped my wand and threw her to the side into a small bookshelf. Shelves fell and a few books fell onto her head. I needed to do this and leave; enough time had been wasted and the ominous magic in the room seemed to grow stronger. Getting out of here was paramount._

_As I stepped past the witch she grabbed onto my leg. "No, please!" I kicked her to the side and continued onto my path towards the crib. Her crying was becoming infuriating and I actually regretted the promise made to Severus. My anger was boiling and the smell of ozone filled the air as my leg was grabbed again. "Please," she screamed, "kill me instead!"_

_"Let go woman!" I kicked her off of me again, but to no avail, as she just grabbed back onto my leg. She screamed for me to kill her instead, but her words fell of deaf ears. Stopping, I just looked at her as she yelled for me to spare her son._

_My killing curse hit her square in the face._

_She dropped lifelessly to the floor and her hand fell from my leg. An unfamiliar magic filled the air as the baby began to cry and I felt a cold sweat drip down my spine._

_I needed to leave immediately._

_Making my way in front of the crying child sitting in the crib, I stopped and aimed my wand directly at his forehead. The child continued to cry and it grated on my nerves. "Quiet, child." I silenced him and took one last look at him, thinking how regrettable it was ending such an old magical family. "Meet your parents." I quietly whispered to him. "_Avada Kedavra_." Bright viridian filled the room as the curse met the child._

_Pain as I never felt before racked through my body as the room exploded out onto the yard. A high-pitched scream left my mouth as my body was turned to dust. The pain of my consciousness leaving my body was beyond my wildest dreams. It felt like multiple Cruciatus curses piled onto one. My scream filled the air as my soul flew from the room and into the sky. My last thought was of the ominous magic that filled the small nursery._

* * *

"Harry!" My shoulders were being shook as I quickly sat up in my bed. "Harry, what's wrong!?" Ron asked from my right. Ignoring him I focused on my dream with sweat covering my body. I could still feel the fear and anger permeating my being. Suddenly, my blood turned to ice as I remembering murdering my parents and a strong wave of nausea hit me like a bludger.

I fell off the bed pushing Ron out of the way and ran into the loo, barely making it to a toilet before losing my dinner. The heaving wouldn't stop as my mind focused on my mother's pleading face penetrating me as I looked down at her.

_What the hell was that nightmare?_

I had never experienced anything like that in my life. White hot knives poked my scar as what was left in my stomach emptied. My hand covered my scar hoping to sooth the pain and a hand fell on my back. The touch brought the image of my mother back to the forefront of my mind and I turned around and slapped the hand away from me. "Don't _touch_ me!" I yelled, my eyes closed as another wave of pain stabbed into my head and tears unwillingly fell.

"Mate, it's okay." My eyes opened slightly to see a blurry Ron holding his wrist with an empathetic look. A violent sob left my body and I pulled my knees to my chest, wrapping them with my arms. My head leaned on my knees and I cried as Ron sat in front of me with a sympathetic look on his face.

Calming down after a while my crying began to fade. Nightmares had plagued me since France, but never anything this vivid.

I _was_ Voldemort.

I could still remember his feelings. Amusement at my father's attitude at the beginning on the confrontation and his surprise at the Dark Magic that James had used against him. The uneasiness of the magic filling the nursery and the anger at my Mother as she pleaded for my life. But that wasn't what scared him the most.

It was the pain and the _fear_.

The pain of having my soul ripped from my body and the fear of death. I had never been afraid of death, in fact I had always been secretly curious about it, but the fear that dominated my mind lingered. I had never felt so scared in my life.

"Better, Harry?" Ron hesitantly asked, reaching to pat my knee but pulling back thinking he probably shouldn't.

"Yeah." I croaked with a sore throat. My head resting on my knees, I apologized. "I'm sorry Ron. I don't know what is happening to me."

"Don't apologize Harry," Ron sighed, "it isn't your fault." I felt a hand rest on my head, "I'll always be here for you mate." The hand left my head as an uncontrollable feeling of gratitude washed over me. "Let's get you up and back to bed. It's still early." He extended his hand and I grabbed it. After being helped up I shook my head.

"There's no way I'm going back to sleep."

"Harry, it's three in the morning." Ron said, "And the Goblet is choosing the champions tonight. I'm sure we will be up late celebrating when Angelina is chosen." He sounded so sure she would be the one. I hated to disagree, but I had the feeling it would be Cedric Diggory.

"I can't Ron. I'm going to the classroom to train a little. You don't have to come." I said walking to the sink to wash the taste of vomit from my mouth.

The red-head sighed quietly, "Of course I'm coming. Let me get dressed and get your cloak." He quietly left the washroom and I sighed before I washed my face with some cold water.

Ron had become much more driven since Hermione died, they trained almost anytime they weren't in class, eating, or sleeping. Both of their grades in wand classes had drastically improved, all of the dueling had been having an obvious effect on their skills.

I walked into the dorm expecting an audience but was pleasantly surprised to see everyone but Ron back in their beds. "I told them to go back to bed and that you were alright." Ron said, seeing the obvious surprise on my face.

"Thanks." I said, and continued to get dressed.

I grabbed my wand from the nightstand and Ron tossed the cloak over our heads as we left the dorm towards the stairs. There was no way I was telling Ron what I was actually thinking.

The incantation for the Blood Freezing curse on the front of my mind.

* * *

The excited murmuring in the Great Hall was almost as effective as a sedative, especially after stuffing my face. My head fell to my crossed arms on the table and my eyes closed slowly. I couldn't help but think about what had been happening to me lately. The random knowledge in classes that I shouldn't know, and the nightmares.

Merlin, the _nightmares_.

A small wave of nausea hit me just thinking about the dream I had last night. This wasn't like normal dreams that usually faded after a few hours, making remembering them almost impossible. This one was clear as day, it was almost like it wasn't a dream, but a memory. My autopilot attitude after this morning's training was starting to worry Ron, it was obvious. But I couldn't help but wonder.

How had I known such a Dark spell? It was as if I had been casting it for years, and it seriously worried me. So, I had finally decided to tell Ron about my dreams and how angry I had been feeling, desperate to get everything off my chest. The look on his face after I told him about my last dream was hard to look at. It wasn't a disgusted and horrified expression like I expected, but one of almost…pity.

And it made me inexplicably angry and confused.

After I showed him how I could suddenly cast the Blood Freezing curse he looked introspective and it made me even more confused. I had wanted to rip my hair out just wanting to know what he was thinking. Then the most ridiculous thing came from his mouth.

"Well that makes things a little easier, doesn't it?" After that he just turned around, one hand cupping his chin and left, lost in thought.

_What the hell did that mean?_

We had hardly spoken the rest of the day during classes. Ron had just had a thoughtful look in every class, he hadn't even payed attention to the classes. I had no idea what was happening with him and it really worried me.

A small shake on my shoulder woke me from my thoughts. The lights dimmed and the Goblet's flames licked the darkness eerily. The mummering came to an instant halt as Dumbledore stood to address the students.

"Welcome everyone! I hope you are all nice and full, as it is finally time to decide our Triwizard Champions. In just a few moments the goblet will spit out three names. After your name is called please come to the front and into the antechamber." He pointed to a door next to the staff table. "Champions remember, the tasks will be perilous and will test your knowledge and skill to the extreme. I implore you to be careful and remember that we are all wishing you luck." He finished as the Goblet's fire flashed and a smoky piece of parchment shot from the flames and into Dumbledore's hand.

He took a look at the parchment and rose his head, "The Champion for Durmstrang; Victor Krum!" The applause was rather loud, everyone loved the quidditch star it seemed. Victor shook Dumbledore's hand and made his way into the chamber.

As the door shut, the Goblet flared again. "The Champion for Beauxbatons; Fleur Delacour!" I clapped and smiled at her as she stood and looked over at me. She smiled back and winked before going to the front. I had a feeling that she was going to be chosen, it was going to be interesting talking to her by the lake. She spoke to Dumbledore for a moment before heading into the chamber herself.

Laying my head back on the table, I had already lost interest in the selection. My thoughts were traveling back to the training I needed to do and plans that needed to be made. Suddenly the applause was deafening. My head quickly shot up to see Diggory walking to the front with a beaming smile on his face.

_I knew it._

A thud sounded down to my left and I looked to see Angelina with her head on the table. I couldn't stop from laughing. My head fell back into my crossed arms and I closed my eyes as the noise lessened and Dumbledore's voice once again filled the hall.

"Congratulations to our Champions! One of them will be crowned as the Triwizard Champion in only seven months. Again, we wish you all—" His voice stopped suddenly and the hall grew silent as the dead. I looked up to see what was happening and met the Headmaster's eyes looking right at me, another piece of parchment in his hand. Dumbledore looked back to the parchment and rubbed his eyes from under his glasses, and audibly sighed. He quietly said something slowly, as if testing the words on his lips.

A few people at the front turned and looked towards my table and the Professors eyes all locked onto me. I looked at Ron, beyond confounded. He just looked at me and shrugged. "_Harry Potter_!" My gaze shot to the front with lightning speed, giving me whiplash. Why was he calling me? Dumbledore looked directly at me and slightly rose the parchment, still smoking from a charred corner. "Harry, please come up and into the antechamber."

_Huh?_

My vision turned back to Ron and his eyes were as round as mine. I shook my head, willing him to believe that I didn't put my name in the Goblet. He continued to stare and I stood up resignedly and slowly made my way to the front, trying to make myself look as small as possible. The glares I was getting from the students were burning into me as I walked towards my beheading.

Standing in front of the Headmaster he looked at me and handed me the parchment. I looked at it in disbelief, "Professor I didn't—"

"Harry please," he interrupted me, "just head into the chamber." Slowly making my way to the door an uncontrollable feeling began to rise. It was taking over and I could barely hold it back. The parchment in my hand burst into flames and the ashes sprinkled to the ground. My teeth grit together and my fists were clenched tight enough to bend steel. My vision tinted red and I reached to open the door.

_I had never felt such a burning rage in my life._


	6. Always Me

**A/N: Sorry it's been so long everyone, but I've been rather busy. I've rewritten this chapter about five times and I'm still not really satisfied with it, but I guess it will be fine. I've also been thinking about changing the perspective to third person, but I'm worried about it messing with the flow of the story and I really don't want to rewrite all six chapters just to make it third person.**

**Let me know what you think if you want; it doesn't have to be in a review, feel free to PM me with your opinions.**

**Disclaimer: Harry Potter is still not owned by me. **

* * *

**Chapter Six: Always Me**

The fury rolled off of me in waves as I made my way down the hallway towards the champions room. I could feel my magic ready to burst, like an over filled balloon. How could this happen?

_Every year, without fail. _

This was some kind of Death Eater plot, it had to be. But how?

_How doesn't matter, only why._

A joke? Doubtful, it wouldn't be a very funny prank. Sending me to my death to be funny, though it would be rather original.

_My death, of course._

The realization only made me angrier. My vision was getting hazy and my mind clouded. Breathing was becoming difficult and I felt light headed.

_I need to calm down. _

Leaning my head against the door into the room, I slowed my breathing and the frustration slightly receded.

Voices behind me caught my attention, Dumbledore and company were gaining on me. I quickly slipped onto the room and shut the door, turning around to the gazes of the other three champions. It seemed I had interrupted their fireside conversation.

Cedric had a frown on his face, "Alright there, Harry?" The displeasure with my situation must have been showing on my face. I ignored him and sat down in an empty chair by the door, leaned my head back and covered my eyes with my hand.

"Harry?" Fleur's voice called out to me with worry, "Is everything okay? What happen-"

"Incredible!" A boisterous voice interrupted her as Ludo Bagman burst through the door, making everyone jump. He was followed by Mr. Crouch and the Headmasters, a few teachers followed behind. "Ladies and Gentleman, may I introduce the _fourth_ champion; Harry Potter!"

Gazes locked onto me again and I felt my anger bubbling back up. Why did this _idiot_ have to be so damn dramatic? Fleur smiled uncertainly, "Very funny Mr. Bagman."

"Funny? This is no joke. His name just came out of the Goblet."

Cedric's frown became more pronounced and he seemed to be upset. Victor was still staring into the fire, obviously not giving a shit. The smile fell from Fleur's face, "What are you—"

"Harry," Dumbledore said with a stern voice, interrupting Fleur – her eye twitching from annoyance. He put his hands on my shoulders. "Did you put your name in the Goblet?"

"No!" Irritated that he even asked. "I didn't—", he help up a hand, effectively quieting me. I gripped my chair hard enough to crack the wood.

"Did you have an older student put your name in the Goblet?"

Throwing his hands off of me I stood up, "No, dammit!" The Headmaster looked into my eyes for a moment and sighed. He turned around to address the other adults.

"I believe we have a problem." Dumbledore explained, "Harry didn't put his name into the Goblet, which means that someone else has." Slightly calming down I looked at Professor Dumbledore with a hint of gratitude. Until a smooth voice destroyed my peace.

"He _lies._" Snape said with a sneer, "Always looking for attention, just like his Father." I grit my teeth and bore a hole through his head with my glare. That one statement pissed me off like no other.

Durmstrangs' Headmaster scoffed, "This is preposterous! Why does Hogwarts get _two_ champions?!" He threw his hands up in frustration, "I demand another draw!"

"It doesn't work that way Igor." Mr. Crouch said while shaking his head, "The Goblet will not relight until the next Tournament."

Madame Maxime lightly touched Dumbledore on the shoulder, "Maybe there was something wrong with the age line?"

Dumbledore stroked his beard, "It's possible, I suppose."

I couldn't listen to this conversation for another second. "Then I withdraw." I stated with force, "I don't want to be in this _stupid_ tournament!"

"Impossible." Crouch's voice immediately denied my request, "The Goblet is a magical binding contract, you have to participate or lose your magic."

_What?_

Ludo scratched his chin, "Well, Barty knows the rules front to back." He clapped his hands excitedly, "How interesting, _four_ champions! It's unprecedented!" Tuning out the idiot I looked to the floor, mind racing.

How could this be happening. Lose my _magic_? My index finger tapped quickly on my left leg as I thought. I couldn't lose my magic, there was too much to do. My fury was building up in my chest and it _hurt._ I closed my eyes as the tapping became faster. This was ridiculous, it interfered with _everything._ Gritting my teeth, I couldn't help but think how much I _hated_ this.

_I **hated** it._

A hand rest on my shoulder and I forcefully swat it off. Looking up to see Dumbledore with an uneasy look on his face just made me even more furious. Why did he let this happen? How could he let this _happen_? Glass cracked and the fire exploded.

"Harry, you need to calm down." I could hear the Headmaster talking to me, but I didn't care to listen. The intense look of hatred I stared him down with caused him to flinch. Fawkes appeared from an explosion of fire onto Dumbledore's shoulder and let out a trill. There was a ringing in my ears that wouldn't go away and it was irritating me even more.

"Potter!" Snape yelled. He visibly paled when my gaze met his and I saw his wand slip into his hand.

"'Arry?" Fleur's voice cut through my rage like a razor. The ringing quieted and I looked around to see everyone with nervous expressions, a few were holding their wands. Kicking my chair, I pushed the Headmaster out of my way and ran through the door, ignoring the shouts from behind me.

_I need to get away._

* * *

Harry Potter, the _fourth_ Champion. I couldn't believe it. How did his name get into the Goblet? He said that he didn't put his name in and based on his reaction, I believe him.

His _reaction…_

I've never felt so nervous in my life, he was so _angry._ I jumped and nearly screamed when the fire exploded. That wasn't accidental magic, it was so oppressing. The room was clearly soaked in his anger and I wasn't the only one to notice, based on everyone's expressions.

After he stormed out of the antechamber, I hesitated a moment and made to follow.

I shook Madame Maxime's hand from my shoulder, "Excuse me Madame." I quickly ran through the doors following Harry, ignoring the Headmistress's cries. He had just made it past the Great Hall doors as I emerged. Sprinting through the Hall, I tried calling his name, but he didn't acknowledge me.

Turning left, I caught a glimpse of him heading up the stairs. "Harry!" I cried, "Wait!" he was ignoring me, and it hurt.

I continued and followed him up the stairs to see him sprint straight past a red-headed boy, Ron, also calling his name. I stopped next to him, breathing heavily.

He just watched Harry run up the stairs with a sad look on his face. He then turned and looked at me. "Fleur."

Taken aback by the simple tone he used, I hesitated to answer. I tried to catch my breath and remove the stitch in my side. _I really need to run more._

I stood up straight and met his gaze, he just stared at me in silence. "Do you know where Harry is going?" I asked, trying to keep the desperation out of my voice.

Ron hummed to himself for a moment, "I have a pretty good idea." He answered simply and turned his head to look back up the stairs. He then turned back to me, "I'll take you there, but let's walk. Give him a moment to cool off." He stated as he began to walk.

I just nodded, deferring to Harry's long-time friend's judgement. He knew him better than I.

As we made it to the second floor, Ron suddenly looked at me, "What happened?"

I matched his stride and thought to myself for a moment, trying to come up with a simple answer. "They told him he had to compete or risk losing his magic." Ron's face paled and he stopped walking.

"_What_? Even if he wasn't the one to put his name in?" he asked, clearly furious for his friend.

"Yes," I answered quietly, feeling rather ashamed. Even I had thought for a moment that he had somehow cheated. "Then he started getting angry and your Headmaster was trying to calm him down." Ron had a serious look on his face, contemplating something. "And then he stormed out." I finished simply. "His reaction wasn't normal." I blurted out.

Ron looked at me confused, "What do you mean?"

Rubbing my eyes, I thought about how to answer. "He was so _angry; _you could feel it in the room." Playing with my hair - a nervous tick I've had as a child - I thought about how to continue. "Glass was breaking, the fire exploded, a phoenix even showed up!" My voice began to raise the further I got into my explanation.

"I see." Was all Ron said as he turned around and continued walking up the stairs.

I followed him, wringing my hands nervously. The thought of seeing and talking to Harry was making me anxious. We hadn't really talked to each other since we had dropped him off at his train.

Lost in thought, I almost ran into Ron when he suddenly stopped in front of a wooden door. "He's probably in here." He said, looking at me with a calculating gaze. "You should talk to him; he's been anxious to really speak to you for months." The red head attempted to open the door, but the handle wouldn't turn.

I watched as Ron pulled out his wand and attempted the unlocking charm. It was still locked. His eye twitched and he grumbled, "The git. What did he do to this door?" He tried several more charms, but none worked. "Bloody hell, I can't get in."

Pulling out my wand, I told him to back up, and cast a weak blasting curse at the handle, blowing the door open. A feeling of dread came over me as soon as the door swung open.

The smell of ozone hit me like a bus and a chill went down my spine. The Dark Magic in the room was tangible. I shot a nervous glance to the boy next me just to see him intently staring at me, as if judging me.

"W-what is this?" I could only whisper.

Ron continued to stare at me, then answered as simply as possible. "He's upset."

_What?_

Turning back to the room, I slowly took a step inside and looked around. The air was thick enough to choke on and the room was as dark as the abyss. There were meter long gashes randomly in the magically reinforced walls and ceiling. Scorch marks littered the room, I assumed from some kind of blasting curse. The window was destroyed, causing a chilly breeze to circulate throughout the room. Pieces of obliterated desks and chairs were laying all over.

A quiet sob echoed off the walls as I fully walked into the room. Harry was sitting in the corner of the room, knees to his chest and head resting on them. His wand was in his hand and for some reason, that terrified me.

"Harry?" I tried gently calling out to him. The lack of response caused me to slowly walk a little closer. The air was getting thicker the nearer I got, causing my breathing to become more labored. I swore the room was become darker the closer I got to him. A black haze muffled the moonlight from the broken window.

_What is this magic?_

Finally standing in front of him, I knelt down and took a long look. The shadows eerily danced around his form. His robes were burnt in places and there were small cuts all over his body. Small pieces of wooden shrapnel stuck into his robes, probably from the scattered desks. I reached out slowly to run my hand through his hair, but was startled when his head suddenly shot up and a wand was in my face. The focused hate in his eyes gave me a cold sweat.

I put my hands up in surrender, "H-harry, it's only me." Recognition flashed in his viridian orbs and he hastily lowered his wand.

"Fleur?" his voice sounded strained, as if he had been screaming. Based on the condition of the room, I wasn't surprised.

"How did you find me?" he asked, still looking into my eyes.

I pointed behind me, "Your friend, Ron. He saw you run off also and thought this is where you might be." Ron was no longer there.

"I see." Harry leaned his head back onto the wall. "Well, this is embarrassing." He joked with a clearly fake smile.

Sitting down next to him, I ran my fingers through his hair. He melted into my touch and closed his eyes. The heavy air and smell of ozone retreated, only the cool breeze remained. "Are you okay?" I asked, though the answer was obvious.

He remained in the same position in silence. A moment later he let out a huge sigh. "No, I'm not." He said simply. "This is getting to be too much. First Hermione, then this. I can't take it anymore." A few tears fell from his eyes, "If Hermione was here, she'd know what to do."

My heart broke at that and a few tears escaped, "I'm truly sorry, Harry."

"It isn't your fault," he said while wiping the tears from his eyes, "you're in this stupid tournament too." He was right, but at least it was voluntary. I tried to put myself in his shoes; fourteen years old and put in a very deadly tournament against his will, losing his magic if he didn't compete. I couldn't fathom it.

"We will get through this, Harry. I promise." I tried to reassure him, or maybe myself. "I'll help you however I can."

He opened his eyes and looked at me with bloodshot eyes, "But we're competing."

I narrowed my eyes at him, "I don't care. If you think you're doing this alone, you're wrong."

"Thank you." He said with a small smile. I stopped playing with his hair and leaned my head on his shoulder. We were both silent, lost in the moment.

A few minutes later he spoke up, "Where's Ron?"

"I'm not sure, he was with me when I came for you, but he was gone a minute later." I explained.

"Brilliant." He whispered, looking out the window into the darkness. "It's late, we should probably go." Harry stood, helping me up after he did. He then looked around and grimaced, "I should probably fix the room first."

He waved his wand and the room began repairing itself right before my eyes. I was shocked that he needed no incantation or wand motion. The desks and windows were repaired, the scorch marks removed, but the gashes remained.

Harry furrowed his brows in concentration and tried the spell verbally to no avail. "I can't fix these cuts."

Walking over to one of the gashes in the wall, I reached out to touch it and immediately snatched my hand back, blowing on my fingers.

The cut was _freezing._

_What cutting curse freezes its target also?_

"Harry," Looking at him nervously, I was almost too afraid to ask, "what spell did you use here?"

"A cutting curse?" He looked adorable when he was confused.

"_Which _one?"

Harry scratched his cheek with a finger, "I don't remember." Putting his hands in his pockets, he went to stand in front of the now fixed window. The moonlight cascaded over his face, washing out his already pale complexion and giving him a haunted look.

Seeing him now, I couldn't help but be concerned for his health. I rubbed my hair in between my fingers absentmindedly, contemplating whether or not to ask him again if he was alright.

Harry was suffering and it was obvious. _Would it be too forward? _I wanted to be there for him, but what could I do?

"Fleur, I'm _tired_." Snapping out of my thoughts, I took a long look at Harry. My watch showed 8:15pm, and I had an idea.

_To hell with too forward. _

"What time is your curfew Harry?"

"Ten." His eyes were closed and he looked to be hardly standing; it tore at my heart. Grabbing his hand, I pulled him over to the corner of the room facing the door. "Fleur?" Confusion filled his emerald eyes.

"Sit." I commanded, pulling him down next to me. "Your head." I said, patting my lap.

He looked away sheepishly, "I couldn't."

"Now." My answer was short and sweet, but he hesitated. Which made me worry that he would get up and walk away. "_Please _'Arry." He shivered slightly as if cold, then slowly moved his body and put his head down - facing away from me - a light pink blush on his cheeks. "Thank you," I whispered, "get some sleep." My hand caressed his hair and he relaxed. "You only have a few hours."

He sniffed slightly and I swear I saw a tear fall from his closed eye. "Thank you, Fleur."

Looking at my watch again, I decided curfew wasn't important and conjured a blanket.

_Goodnight, Harry._

* * *

"Mate, where were you last night?"

I looked at Ron as he sat next to me and started shoveling breakfast onto his plate.

Looking away, I fought back a blush at remembering the compromising position Fleur and I had woken up in.

"Sorry, I feel asleep in the classroom." I said before putting a bit of sausage in my mouth.

Ron's eyebrows almost rose into his hairline, "But what about, you know…" He glanced towards the Ravenclaw table. Following his glance, I spotted a girl next to Fleur shooting me an icy glare. I quickly looked away.

"She went back to her carriage."

"And just left you there? Alone?" he asked, a little _too_ loud.

"_Shut_ _up_ Ron, Merlin." I hissed, poking him with my fork.

"Oi! Stop that!" He attacked my fork with his, almost starting some juvenile sword fight.

"And where did you go?" I questioned, focusing my attention back on my sausage.

Ron just shrugged, "Back to the common room. I figured she could handle you and I needed to think."

"I see. That's a first."

"Prat."

I just laughed and continued eating. The amount of sleep I got last night was divine, I hadn't felt so good since France. My energy was high and I was feeling great, and not a single nightmare.

_Speaking of nightmares._

"Ron, we need to talk. In the classroom."

He looked a little concerned, but the look rapidly turned to one of seriousness. "Alright, tonight then?"

I nodded and ended the conversation, glancing back to Fleur and losing myself in thought.

_I'm supposed to meet Fleur by the lake after this._

* * *

Sitting by the lake was one of the few things I enjoyed about Hogwarts now. I found myself skipping classes today to simply relax, which was new for me. Sitting on the grass, I was banishing small rocks across the water, trying to see how many times they would skip.

Rubbing my eyes my thoughts traveled to my future talk with Ron. I was beyond grateful that he didn't think I put my name in the cup, unlike many other students in the castle it seemed. There was additional planning that needed to be done and not much time to do it; just thinking about it gave me a headache.

Not only was the Triwizard business inconvenient, the timing was beyond abysmal. Footsteps brought me out of my muse, and I turned to see the Goddess herself and her brunette friend walking towards me.

Standing up, I dusted myself off and began walking to meet them. "Hello Harry." Fleur said and opened her arms for a hug, a beaming smile on her face.

"Hey, Fleur." Hesitating slightly, I returned the hug and shot a glance at her friend, she was staring at me calculatingly.

Stepping back, I noticed the brunette taking a step forward, extending her hand. I reached out to grab it, introducing myself to be polite. "Hello, I'm Harry Potter." I put my most charming smile on my face, which wasn't saying much.

She just smiled and looked pointedly to Fleur, causing her to start. "Ah, I'm sorry. Harry this is Emilie, my best friend."

Emilie looked back to me, "It's nice to finally meet you. I've heard much about you."

"Good things, I hope." Laughing nervously, I put my hands in my pockets and stared back towards the lake. "Should we sit?" I said, pointing to my earlier spot. They nodded and I brought them over to my favorite spot, waving my wand to dry the grass. "Ladies first." Smiling I waved my hands dramatically to the dried grass.

They smiled and sat down after smoothening out their robes; I sat down next to Fleur and looked back towards the lake, resuming my rock banishing and sneaking glances at Fleur when I thought she wasn't looking. "So, Harry." Emilie suddenly said, "What are your intentions towards my Fleur?"

The rock I was banishing shot much further than I was intending; interrupting a couple walking around the lake as my rock burrowed into the ground at their feet, effectively scaring the daylights out of them and causing both to give me a nasty glare.

"Impressive." Emilie teased.

Failing to fight a blush, I looked away. "W-what? Intentions?" She laughed at my expense and the blush increased from embarrassment. I hated how easily it happened.

Fleur swat her on the shoulder, chuckling. "Ignore her Harry. She teases everyone."

"O-okay." I stuttered stupidly. Nervously tapping my left hand on my leg, I realized that this tangent was making me uncomfortable. I already didn't know what kind of relationship I wanted us to have, but even I wasn't dense enough to not see the signs Fleur was giving.

Fleur must have noticed because she quickly changed the subject, "I forgot to tell you yesterday, but the First Task is on the 24th."

My stomach dropped, that was less than a month. "Also," Emilie continued, taking over Fleurs idea, "They won't tell you what it is."

_Of course they won't. _

"That's wonderful, really." I groaned, "Anything else?" I asked, exasperated. There was always something else.

Fleur just pat my shoulder, trying to comfort me. "They are weighing our wands next week."

My eyes shot to hers, "The hell does _that_ mean?" That question caused both girls to laugh.

My question was answered by Emilie, "They are just going to make sure the wands are functional before the tournament officially begins." Fleur silently nodded along.

"Oh, that makes sense."

Hearing a faint shout of my name, I looked towards the castle to see Ron running towards us, a serious look on his face. His expression immediately put me on guard, something must have happened.

"Hey, Ron. What's wrong?" Ron nervously glanced over towards Fleur and Emilie, then he looked at me, basically asking for clearance with his eyes. "It's fine."

"Harry," Ron began, speaking quickly, "something's _wrong_ with Draco."

I stared at him for a moment in silence.

"So?"

"Mate, he's in the hospital wing. Got hurt dueling." Ron continued and I was still confused at why we should care. He must have took my extended silence as an answer. "He was dueling other _Slytherins_."

_Oh._

"Why?" I asked, scratching my head in confusion.

Ron shook his head, "I don't know, but it was brutal."

"I see." Honestly, I was slightly worried about the way Draco had been acting lately. It was obvious he was having some kind of trouble with Hermione's death. I had my suspicions, but my brain refused to accept them.

_Maybe I should go check on him. _

"Who is Draco?" Fleur asked curiously, pulling me out of my thoughts.

Ron turned to her, "Draco Malfoy; pure-blood, pompous git extraordinaire."

"He's Hogwarts resident bully." I explained.

"Draco's been acting odd ever since—"

"_Ron_." I quickly interrupted him before he said something he shouldn't. The last thing I wanted to do was bring anyone else I really cared about into the shit-show that was my life. Turning back to the girls I tried to explain it away, "It's nothing really. He has been acting strange this year is all." Looking back to Ron I nodded to the castle, "Maybe we should see if he's alright."

I looked back towards the girls and smiled, "It was nice meeting you Emilie."

She smiled back, "You as well Harry." The brunette took a step towards me and put a hand on my shoulder, I tried hard not to shrug it off. "Be good to my Fleur; you understand?"

"Of course," I looked back to Fleur, who had her arms open obviously expecting another hug. Awkwardly complying, I stepped into her arms and gave her a quick hug.

"I'll see you later Fleur." Pulling away, I turned around and motioned for Ron to follow me. He waved at the girls and we started to make our way back to the castle.

_The hell is wrong with you Draco?_


	7. Fraud

**A/N: Hey everybody! Sorry for the long wait, it's been a hell of a few months with this virus shit and I've been busy. I apologize for the short chapter also, but I wanted to try a different writing style other than first person. As I've never written a story in third person, I hope that it came out okay and sorry if it didn't. Now enough of my apologies, on with the story.**

**I OWN NOTHING.**

**Chapter Seven: Fraud**

Harry and Ron stood at the foot of Draco's infirmary bed; white sheets surrounded the three boys, separating them from the rest of the Hospital Wing. Silence reigned supreme as they just stared at each other, each refusing to be the first to look away.

The silence was finally broken by Draco, "What the _hell_ do you two want?"

"We're here to make sure you're okay, you great bloody prat." Ron glared at the blond with his arms crossed, wanting nothing more than to curse the bastard himself.

Malfoy sneered, "I don't need your sympathy _Weasley_, go die in a hole."

"Why you—"

"Ron, stop." Harry grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back, "Why don't you keep watch? I need to talk to Draco."

Ron looked at Harry and then back to the blond, "Fine."

As soon as the red head walked through the sheet, Harry's wand was out casting privacy charms. "Paranoid, Potter?" Draco said with his patented sneer. The young Gryffindor stood there silently for a moment taking in Malfoy's pathetic state. Sunken eyes, pale skin, and unkempt hair; Draco already knew he looked awful.

"What is wrong with you Malfoy? I mean _really_, fighting with your own housemates?"

"None of your damn business, scar-head." He didn't need to explain himself to this bastard, it wasn't like he would understand. How could he? It wasn't like Potter's father murdered the girl his son was interested in.

Not that he would ever tell this idiot that.

"Is this about Hermione?" Draco flinched and then swore in his head, now Potter knew he had hit the nail on the head. "What was going on between you two?"

"What? What makes you think that I would want anything to do with that _Mudblood_—"

"_Shut up._" Potter was beyond pissed and Draco paled seeing the cold fury in his eyes. "I'm going to kill your father Draco."

Malfoy leaned his head back on the headboard, surprised at how nonchalant the words came out of his mouth. "Big words Potter. What makes you think I'll let you?" The raven-haired boy slowly started walking around the side of his bed. Draco shivered as he felt a sudden cold breeze and swore the room had gotten darker, like the sun had hidden behind the clouds. He flinched again when he looked into Potter's eyes, he could have sworn they were glowing.

"What makes you think you could stop me?"

He stopped right next to the bed, eyes never leaving the bedridden blonde's, "Don't you want revenge, Malfoy?" Draco broke into a cold sweat, this wasn't Potter. The green-eyed boy was harmless, whoever this was _radiated_ danger. The scathing remark died in his throat as his fight or flight response kicked in.

"I'm not going to _kill _my father. You're not Potter, who are you?" Draco was barely able to get the words out before a terrifying laugh echoed off the stone walls and bore straight into his soul. The room grew even darker and the breeze was getting colder. The hairs on his neck stood up and he found himself leaning away from the fake Potter, fear settling in his gut.

A lopsided grin slowly grew on his face, "I am me, Draco. Who else would I be? Besides, I'm not talking about your father. I'm talking about _Voldemort. _Now, answer my question."

Revenge against the Dark Lord? Draco looked anywhere but at Potter's haunted eyes. He could have sworn the shadows on the bed were _writhing._ The sound of his heart beating in his chest was deafening and he could hardly hear himself think. "Revenge for _what_, Potter?"

"Don't be stupid, Malfoy." Harry said, the grin slowly leaving his face. "For your murdered lover of course."

Draco looked back incredulously, "We weren't lovers _Potter._ What the bloody _hell_ makes you think that?" Of course, they weren't lovers. Draco didn't _love_ Granger, but that doesn't mean he wasn't _interested_ in her. The way she would bite back after he threw insults amazed him. The way she seemed to know everything astounded him. The spark in her eye when she knew the answer to a question. Not like he was watching or anything.

Definitely not.

The thought of revenge was bittersweet. It was his _father_ that murdered her, but then again, it was the _Dark Lord's fault_. Draco was getting pissed just thinking about it. He never wanted to be like his father, licking the boots of some master that would torture him on a whim. He wanted to be his own man, create his own legacy.

_If only he didn't exist._

Harry just stared at him with a bored look on his face, "Whatever, Malfoy. Deny it or not, I don't really care."

As quickly as it came, the oppressing darkness and freezing wind vanished as Weasley's head appeared through the sheets. Potter waived his wand and the silencing charms vanished. "Harry, Madame Pomfrey is coming."

Draco looked back to the Potter doppelganger as it spoke again, "Come find me when you realize exactly what it is that you want, Draco." He watched both Gryffindors' leave and let out the breath he didn't realize he was holding.

Something was terribly wrong with Potter.

Harry found himself back in his spot by the lake after dinner in the Great Hall. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed; everything felt like it was spiraling out of control. The only people in the school that wouldn't glare and openly taunt him were Ron, Fleur, and Emilie. It wasn't like he wanted to be in the bloody tournament; he was a _victim_ here.

Harry couldn't help but think of Fleur. She was an enigma to him. He was trying desperately to push her away, terrified of having her caught in the cascading avalanche that was his life, but she just kept coming back. The young wizard was half thrilled that there was someone who cared so much about him, but half mortified that she would become a target.

Harry was interrupted from his thoughts as he noticed Ron making his way down from the castle, a piece of parchment flapping in the wind as he ran. "Harry!" He yelled, pushing said parchment into Harry's face.

"Merlin Ron, back off." Harry pushed the hand away from his face, grabbing the parchment at the same time. Looking at it he noticed it was the Marauder's Map. Harry looked back up at Ron, "So the twins are done with it?"

Ron waved his question off, "Yeah whatever Harry, look at this though." Ron pointed to the Defense classroom. It showed one Alastor Moody and Bartemius Crouch in the office, Moody was standing still, but Crouch was pacing. Harry just looked back up with his eyebrows raised. "Now look here." Ron pointed to Dumbledore's office.

There was another Crouch in Dumbledore's office. "That's odd." Harry said, scratching his chin. "Maybe the map is wrong?"

Ron shook his head, "The map is never wrong, you know that. Moody hasn't moved a bit in hours. I've been watching."

"I don't know Ron." Harry just shrugged and yawned, "We can look at it tomorrow, we have class with him first thing in the morning." He deactivated the map and shoved it in his pocket as he began to walk towards the castle, "Let's get to training, I don't want to die in this damn tournament." Ron just shrugged and fell in step next to Harry.

The next morning, I found myself sitting next to Ron in Defense; watching as Moody lectured. My mind was wandering, and the sound of Moody's voice had almost put me to sleep when Ron elbowed me in the side. A loud bang and sharp pain in my knee later had everyone's attention on me. Smiling awkwardly, I focused my attention back on the lecture. A few minutes later my mind was trailing off again. In my boredom I decided to discreetly take a look at the Map.

_Bartemius Crouch_ was teaching the class. My eyes darted from the Map to fake Moody and I noticed his shoulders tense. Suddenly he turned around, fury in his eyes. "One-foot essay on ways to block an Unforgivable! Class dismissed!"

Ron and I shot a nervous glance at each other. "Um, Sir? There's still an hour—", a Slytherin in the front of the class began to ask, before being cut off.

"I said class dismissed!" Crouch's gaze landed on me as everyone frantically packed their bags to leave, "Potter, you stay behind."

_Oh shit._

"Professor, I can't be late to Potions or—"

"I'll write you a note!"

Ron was slowly putting his supplies back into his bag. "Weasley!", Crouch yelled as he took a step forward, "Go to your next class."

Ron looked nervous, but he made no movements towards the door. "Maybe I should stay. Harrys been a bit of a target lately." I nodded towards the door, telling him it was fine. Hopefully he would get help.

Crouch shot Ron a piercing glare, "Then I'll walk him back myself! Now go!" Ron closed his eyes for a second and let out a large sigh, slipping his wand into his hand. My wand was ready a fraction of a second later, but so was Crouch's.

The Professor's magical eye swirled around in its socket as he moved to the middle of the classroom, while his real eye moved back and forth between Ron and I. "Oh, attacking a Professor, now are we?" Crouch snarled, "That's grounds for expulsion."

"You aren't a Professor." I said, slowly moving around to his flank; wand half raised, ready to cast a shield. "So, who are you? _Bartemius_ _Crouch_? Why would a Triwizard judge pretend to be Professor?"

The fake just laughed menacingly, "That's a handy Map you have Potter." Before I could pocket it, a silent summoning charm caused the Map to fly into Crouch's outstretched hand. As soon as it touched his hand though, the parchment burst into flames. Quickly dropping it, the bastard narrowed his eyes at me. "That was a waste, Potter. My Master could have made great use of that."

_A Death Eater. Of course._

"I would rather no one have it, than for your dirty master to touch it." Losing the Map was a colossal loss, but I could only imagine what could happen if it fell into Voldemort's hands. Glancing over to Ron I gave a quick nod. We both cast quick piercers as Crouch raised his own wand.

Then all Hell broke loose.

"This castle is enormous. My feet are beginning to hurt." Fleur rolled her eyes at Emilie's whining.

"You're the one that wanted to explore." Fleur said, "I was perfectly content sitting by the lake."

"Oh yeah? You mean waiting to see your _boyfriend_?" The brunette teased, poking Fleur on the cheek.

"He's not my boyfriend." The blonde said, "_Yet_." She finished with conviction, causing Emilie to stop and raise her eyebrows.

"So, you've finally decided?" Emilie asked.

Fleur had been thinking about it almost as much as she had the tournament. She didn't care about his age; she was comfortable in his presence and that said a lot about the boy.

"I have." Fleur said, rubbing her hair between her fingers, "But I'm not sure about what _he_ thinks." She rubbed her eyes and frowned, "I think he's distancing himself from me. I'm not sure what to do."

Emilie gave Fleur a warm smile, "He obviously likes you. He's just been through a lot this year." Her friend said, patting Fleur gently on the back, "What with his friend _dying_ and then being forced into a _deadly_ tournament. Put yourself in his shoes."

Fleur sighed and nodded. She was about to respond when an earth-shaking explosion rattled the castle. Dust fell from the ceiling and portraits fell from the walls. Pieces of stone shattered against the wall directly ahead of them, shredding the tapestry that had been hanging.

"RON!"

Fleur's heart almost stopped hearing the pained scream. She quickly made her way around the corner, towards the screaming. What she saw caused her to stop dead in her tracks. The entrance to the classroom was in shambles. Stone and wood lay scattered over the ground; broken desks and glass lay everywhere, dark red smears trailed to two figures each on opposite sides of the classroom. A tall brown headed man stood, bloody, in the middle of a thoroughly destroyed room.

"FLEUR, RUN!" Harry screamed at her, holding a bloodied stump close to his chest, left hand missing. Red trails fell from both his eyes and his nose, hair matted with a mixture of dust and blood. Ron lay against the wall with one leg bent at an unnatural angle, holding his bloodied head, trying to blink out of a daze.

Fleur froze as she saw the man's gaze land on her. The sheer _insane_ look in his eyes and horrifying smile caused her to feel a fear that she had never felt before. Like someone had grabbed a hold of her heart and _squeezed._ The insane man raised his wand, tip glowing bright green with the spell that would end her short life.

"RON!" Harry screamed again frantically, the wild look on his face that was exacerbated by the blood caked to it.

"_Avada Kedavra!"_

Emilie screamed behind Fleur as a desk just made it into the path of the spell and burst, knocking them to the ground and peppering them both with splinters, giving Fleur a gash across the cheek. A heavenly song filled the air and as if on cue the man sprinted through the office door just as Albus Dumbledore appeared in a burst of fire, wand drawn and radiating power.

"Professor!" Harry yelled, voice cracking from pain. "The office! Not Moody." He lost the fight with consciousness as he succumbed to the darkness.

"Fawkes." Dumbledore simply said, then rushed through the office door, chasing after the imposter. After letting out a short trill, the phoenix flew to pick something up, then jumped on Harry and disappeared in another burst of fire, before showing up again to take the redhead.

Fleur was attacked from behind by a hysterical brunette as another flash of flames appeared in front of her. The phoenix hopped on her leg and Fleur saw _fire_ as she was swept away by the mystical creature.

Harry shot up in bed, eliciting a painful groan as knives shot through his entire body. Looking around quickly he noticed that he was surrounded by _white_.

_The Hospital Wing, again._

The next thing he noticed was the fact that his left hand was reattached, a thick scar circled completely around where it was severed. Harry flexed his hand a few times and let out a sigh.

_Magic was amazing._

Grabbing his glasses from the nightstand and putting them on he slowly laid back down and closed his eyes, thinking about the confrontation with Crouch Junior. How they had gotten their heads kicked in by one man. How he had almost died. How his best mate had almost died. How _Fleur_ had almost died.

His uselessness infuriated him. It was only _one man_. They had to get better; if he and Ron couldn't take a single Death Eater, then the plan would fail before it even really began. Harry opened his eyes and sat up, noticing a glass of water and his wand sitting by where his glasses were. Under the glass was a small envelope.

Confused, Harry grabbed his wand and lit it. Pink sparkling glitter covered the envelope and Harry's name was on the front in very loopy and pink writing. Amused, he opened it and pulled out a card. A unicorn dancing on a rainbow decorated the front of the card; when he opened it, he couldn't help but laugh out loud as the inside was covered in even more glitter. A few sentences in French were written in the small space that _wasn't_ covered in sparkly pink. A large girly signature filled the rest of the space.

_Love, Gabrielle._

"Harry?" A voice broke him out of his musing.

Harry put the card down, "Ron?"

"Yeah, mate. You okay?" Merlin, he was glad that Ron was okay. Last Harry saw him, he was covered in blood and broken. Harry's worst nightmare had almost come true. Tears stung his eyes as he thought about it. What would happen to him if he lost Ron too? Harry was sure he would break beyond repair.

"Yeah, I'm alive. If only just." Ron let out a small laugh, immediately followed by a wet cough that definitely didn't sound normal.

"Ron, is everything okay?" Harry heard his friend let out a quiet hum.

"We got our arses kicked." Ron finally said.

"Yeah."

"By one bloody guy."

"Yeah…."

"Why did he take a vial of your blood?"

"No idea mate."

"We aren't even close to ready, are we?"

"No." Harry rested the back of his head on the headboard. He heard Ron let out another long sigh. "At least we're alive and in one piece." Harry tried to be optimistic.

Ron let out a quiet chuckle, "Barely, they had to get _Snape_ to reattach your hand. Apparently whatever spell cut it off was _Dark_."

"Well if anyone knows anything about Dark Magic, it would be that bastard." Harry grabbed his glass of water and took a drink to sooth his parched throat. "How long have I been asleep?"

Ron was silent for a moment, "About a week."

Harry was immediately alarmed, "A _week?!" _Harry gripped his glass tight enough to crack it, "_**FUCK**_! There's only two weeks until the First Task!" He was panicking, "What the _hell_ is it with this year and all this _shit_ we have to deal with!" Harry threw the glass with all his strength and it shattered against the stone, shards of glass and water flew everywhere.

"_Mr. Potter_!" Harry winced as he heard the voice of the Matron from across the room.

"Now you've done it mate."

Harry repaired the glass and flipped Ron the bird from behind the curtains.


	8. A Promise I Couldn't Keep

**Chapter Eight: A Promise I Couldn't Keep**

_Fleur was doing her best to not hyperventilate as she stood in a familiar dark corridor. Again, it was happening _again_. She knew how it ended but was still all too terrified to continue walking. Eventually she gathered her courage and began to slowly make her way to the door at the end of the hallway._

_Her steps made a hollow knocking with every step she took, echoing off the dark stone and making it sound like she was being followed. Fleur knew she shouldn't look behind her, the inky darkness scared her just as much as the blood dripping from the ceiling and leaking from in-between the cracks in the stone from the walls. The rotten wood of the door was far from welcoming, and what she knew was behind it made her want to retch. _

_Why couldn't she just _wake up_?_

_Fleur checked her pocket for her wand, knowing very well that it wouldn't be there. She couldn't do it again. The carnage behind the door was too much to bear, but the _thing _that came from the abyss behind her made her shudder._

_Soft knocks began to sound from the darkness and Fleur closed her eyes and began to cry._

_Wake up._

_The temperature was steadily dropping as the steps drew closer._

Please wake up.

_A raspy breathing could now be heard accompanying the steps and her breath was now visible._

_Wakeupwakeupwakeupwakeupwakeupwakeup__**WAKEUP!**_

_An ungodly screeching noise, like a blade being drug across stone, was right behind her. The hairs stood up as she felt its breath, smelling like rotting corpses, on the back of her neck. With her eyes still closed she immediately pushed the door open and the stench vanished. _

_Fleur fearfully opened her eyes to see an utterly demolished classroom. Fresh blood painted the walls and floor crimson. Harry was lying on the ground covered in blood and _disemboweled_, the glassy look of death in his eyes. She couldn't see Ron – she never could – but based on the blood, he probably _exploded.

_Standing in the middle of the wreckage was a tall brown-haired _monster_. Covered in flesh and gore, empty sockets, and a smile much too big for its face filled with teeth like a shark. A laugh from the deepest pits of hell came from the demon as it raised its wand, taking aim at her. Fleur cried more as she stood frozen, unable to close her eyes. She didn't want to see it again. _

_The bright green killing curse hit her in the chest._

* * *

Fleur woke up with a sob, one hand going to her mouth and the other to her stomach in a hardly successful attempt to keep the nausea away. The image of Harry's intestines spilling from his body had burned itself into her brain after a week of the same recurring nightmare. She couldn't understand why the Defense Professor would attack his students. It had been a week since the incident, and she was still beating herself up over her uselessness.

It was the World Cup all over again.

Seeing Harry unconscious and bleeding in that bed and missing a hand had almost broken her. No amount of reassuring from Emilie, Ron, or Dumbledore could console her. If she hadn't frozen, she could have helped the Headmaster at least maybe _catch_ the man. But no, she had almost _died._

_Again._

Fleur grabbed a pillow, shoving it into her face, and _screamed_. She screamed until her throat hurt and then she screamed some more. The only sound in the room was her muffled sobbing as she cried into her pillow. What felt like hours later, she threw the pillow across the room and the soft glow of the sun washed over her face from the carriage window, helping her to shake the remnants of the nightmare from her mind. Fleur slowly stretched and stood to get ready for the day and to go visit Harry. Every day for a week she had been to the Infirmary to check on him; and every time she saw him asleep tore straight into her soul. Maybe he would be awake this time. The thought caused a small smile to break out on her face as she grabbed clothes for a shower.

Just maybe.

* * *

"_**Don't. Patronize.**_ _**Me!**_"

Was the first thing Fleur heard as she opened the Infirmary doors. Harry was screaming at the top of his lungs at somebody, and he was _pissed_. Ron stood outside closed hanging white curtain, wand in hand. He spotted her and shook his head putting up a finger to his lips. She started to quietly make her way over to Ron, when she heard the Headmaster's voice.

"Harry please—" Another yell cut him off.

"NO! If you won't tell me anything useful, then _get out_!" Fleur noticed the glass in the windows bending _in_ before shattering as Harry yelled himself into a violent coughing fit. Ron grimaced at the wet cough that his best friend was producing. Whatever Dumbledore and Harry had been discussing was clearly not meant for her ears, but her curiosity overrode her manners.

"I only mean to _protect you_." The most celebrated wizard alive was almost _pleading_, Fleur couldn't believe her ears.

"Well you're doing a _bang-up job at that." _Harry growled with a venom in his voice that made Ron and her _both_ shiver. "Every single year it's _something. _Voldemort, a basilisk _and_ Voldemort, Dementors and werewolves and mass murderers, and this year; bloody _Death Eaters_ and a _**bloody flaming GOBLET!**_"

Fleur screamed as the curtain instantly combusted with a wave of heat like she had never felt before, and she was part _Veela. _She stopped breathing when through the flames, she saw Harry on his feet looking at Dumbledore with pure and unadulterated _**hate**_. Fleur wasn't sure if the red bleeding into his emerald eyes was from the fire, or _something else. _

Evidently Fleur wasn't the only one who noticed, based on the stiffening of the old wizard's shoulders and how he subtlety moved himself between Harry and her. All four stood in silence as the curtain incinerated and turned to ash; then she met Harry's eyes and she could literally see the consuming rage change into a hopeless exhaustion.

Harry let out a huge sigh as he slowly sat back down on the bed, rubbing his eyes. Fleur went to make her way to him before she was stopped by Dumbledore. "Harry, could you look at me?" The Headmaster asked calmly. Harry moved his hand looked up, his eyes the usual mesmerizing emerald.

With a thin _crimson _ring around his pupils.

The tensing on the Headmaster's shoulders was subtle, but Fleur caught it.

"Professor, I'm tired. Could you please just _go_?

Dumbledore hesitated slightly, but after a moment of deliberation, he answered. "Of course, Harry." The Headmaster's eyes meet hers, "Could I please speak you, Ms. Delacour?"

"O-okay." Fleur stuttered, not expecting to be addressed by the venerable wizard. She followed the Headmaster towards the entrench to the Infirmary, but not before looking over her shoulder to see a thoroughly defeated Harry Potter sitting with his hands covering his face and elbows resting on his knees.

Fleur felt her eyes getting wet, she hated seeing him like this. Looking back in front of her, she followed Dumbledore out the double doors. As soon as they left the room she was motioned to the side by the older wizard. "Ms. Delacour,"

"Please, call me Fleur." She said automatically, blushing as she realized just who she interrupted.

The Headmaster just smiled, "Fleur, have you noticed any changes in Harry since your time spent in France?" She was slightly taken aback by the direct question, but began to think.

_He's much angrier, he isn't sleeping or eating like he should, he's hiding things, and the Dark Magic._

Fleur could think of _many_ things that had changed. She could also understand the reasoning for all but _one_. How did he know such awful magic? But, Fleur didn't want to betray Harry's trust in her.

So she lied to the most celebrated wizard in recent history.

"Not much sir, he's a little more angry than he was at home, but I can understand with everything that's happened." Fleur said, rubbing her hair in her fingers for comfort. Which more than likely gave her away.

Dumbledore was quiet for a moment, before lightly nodding his head, "Yes, one can only imagine exactly what young Harry has been through." He said, running his fingers through his beard.

"What he's been through?" She asked with curiosity, "what has he been through besides this?" Fleur was genuinely curious, he had the haunted eyes of a man thrice his age, and she wanted to know more about him.

Dumbledore looked away, denying her curiosity, "It's not my tale to tell, you would have to ask him." The Headmaster looked back at her, "Please let me know if you notice any unusual changes in Harry."

"You," Fleur wet her lips nervously, "you want me to _spy_ on him?"

"Good Heavens, no." Dumbledore chuckled, "I only mean to help him through this dark time. Grieving alone with your thoughts is rarely better for one's mind; especially one so young, yet so old."

Fleur opened her mouth to ask what he meant, but was immediately cut off by the Headmaster, "I am grateful for you, Fleur." He said, a twinkle in his eyes, "you have been a far greater friend than most for him. Yet, I sense something greater than friendship could be beyond the horizon?"

Fleur couldn't help but blush and look away. "It is rather one sided." She eventually said.

"Yes well, give him time. Let him know you are there for him." Dumbledore looked at his bare wrist, "Well, look at the time." He turned to her again, "it was a pleasure." Dumbledore walked away leaving Fleur as confused as ever.

* * *

Harry was laying down now eyes closed, nursing a headache from hell and reflecting on his conversation with Dumbledore and Ron's quick departure. Maybe he had been out of line, yelling at him like that. Harry had just been so angry, not even at him, just at the world; and having Fleur see him like that, and hearing her scream almost broke him.

_What the_ fuck_ is happening to me?_

"Harry?" An angels voice called out to him.

_Shit,_ the one person he did but didn't want to see.

He opened his eyes, clearly seeing her beautiful face looking as glum as he had ever seen. Suddenly, the vision of the Killing Curse heading towards her tore it's way to the front of his mind, "Fleur," he sat up quickly, "are you okay?" She opened her mouth to reply, but only a choking noise came out. Fleur's eyes began to water as he face slowly went pink, she was about to cry.

Harry slid over and pat the space right next to him. She immediately shot into the bed next to him, put her head on his chest and began to cry. He awkwardly pat her back and let her get it all out.

An eternity later, her crying had reduced to sniffles, "I'm sorry 'Arry."

"It's okay Fleur," Harry had not the faintest idea what she was sorry for, so he guessed, "you can cry on me whenever you want."

"Non, not for that."

_Damn._

She sniffed again, "I'm sorry that I couldn't help you with that _monster._" Another sniff, "I just saw you on the ground and _froze._" Her head buried further into his chest, "I'm _useless_."

Merlin, Harry was glad that she had froze. If she had been any closer, that Killing Curse would have gotten her. She _couldn't_ die, not her. "You're far from useless Fleur," He consoled her, "that man was…very good. Nothing like the wannabes in the forest. Ron and I are lucky that we aren't_ dead_."

Harry lifted his arm staring at the unsightly black scar wrapping around his wrist, "Though, I did get a nice souvenir from him." He chuckled bitterly. He wasn't being humble, he and Ron were thoroughly destroyed by Crouch Jr. Very quickly at that, sure they had gotten a few hits on him, but he had shrugged them off or shielded them. Before he had knew it, he was missing his wand hand and blown into the wall, along with Ron. Whatever blasting curse he had used completely decimated the classroom.

Fleur shot up and grabbed his wrist, "It isn't _funny, _you could have _died._" She looked into his eyes and _sobbed_. "You _should_ _have died!_" She all but yelled into his face.

Harry leaned his head back and raised his eyebrows his shock, "W-what?"

"You were_ lucky._" She hissed. "Why did you even _confront him in the first place if you knew he was an imposter_?" Fleur stood up, face turning red.

She was _pissed_.

"H-how did you know-"

"_The whole school knows!"_

Harry sighed, "The map showed a different name on it. I just wanted to verify, but forgot about his _eye_."

"What map?" she asked, calming down slightly and sitting back down on the bed.

Harry waved off her question, "It doesn't matter, I destroyed it." Harry continued his story, "He saw it through the desk and immediately ended the class; telling me to stay after. Ron wouldn't leave and then that one-sided duel took place." He looked back into her eyes, reaching up to remove his glasses so that he could scratch his eyes. Harry's fingers went directly into his face, he wasn't wearing glasses.

"What the hell," Harry looked around dumbfounded, everything was crystal clear. "I can see." He looked back at Fleur, who was now holding a mirror. Harry took the mirror and slowly moved it in front of his face, worried about what he would see.

_What the hell? _

"Why?" Was all he could say.

"I don't know Harry. They changed like that after you yelled at the Headmaster."

Harry could only sigh. Well at least this was the least of his problems. He lay back down and gave Fleur a pointed look. She quickly came back to his side, same position he was in before, and she let out a quiet sigh. He automatically put his arm around her as she snuggled into his side; she was asleep within minutes.

Harry laid his head back down on the pillow, taking a quick glance at her platinum hair, then closing his eyes.

_Shit._

* * *

The next couple weeks flew by with Ron and his training. Fleur let him know was the task was, but there wasn't much time to make a plan. So he decided he would try to out fly the dragon on his Firebolt.

Reckless? Yes.

Dangerous? Absolutely, but it was the most sound plan he had. Right now he was sitting in the champions tent with Fleur sitting right next to him, and Krum standing, leaning against the tent post looking as apathetic as ever.

Every cheer and cry had Fleur grabbing tightly onto my arm. Her gaze was glued to the entrance of the arena. Harry pat her hand, "He will be okay. Cedric is a great wizard." He tried to reassure her.

Fleur's bright blue eyes looked into his, "I'm not worried about _him_. I'm worried about _you_."

"I'll be fine, but _you _need to be careful." A cannon shot in the distance signaled that it was her turn. She stood up with confidence.

"Promise me you will be fine." Fleur demanded.

"What? Fleur, I can't promise that." Harry stood up and put a hand on her shoulder, "I'll do my best."

Fleur slapped his hand off of her, "Non! Promise me!"

"Alright! I promise." Harry relented. Her smile returned to her face as she pat his cheek. They had gotten a lot closer these two weeks. Harry had finally given up on pushing her away, she was much too determined and he was deathly afraid of hurting her.

He watched her as she sauntered out of the tent, but his eyes went to Krum's dark expression and how his eyes were glued to her.

_What's his problem?_

* * *

Walking outside a somber silence filled the air. The excited jeers from the crowd were what Harry had expected, but the stands must have been silenced. A deep rumbling broke said silence and he looked at the cause.

A three story, midnight black monstrosity filled his vision. Head as large as a truck and teeth longer than his arms filled its mouth. Huge spikes ran down it's back, all the way to its tail.

Red eyes glared at Harry, filled with murder. The Horntail lifted it's head and roared, forcing him to cover his ears with his hands. Every part of the monster was a weapon, from its head to its tail, even its roar.

Snapping out of his stupor, he flicked his wrist and took a hold of his wand. Quickly running behind a large boulder, Harry summoned his Firebolt from his dorm. He waited a moment and peeked out from the side of the rock; the broom was speeding through the air straight towards him.

Harry ducked behind the rock again as he narrowly missed getting his face roasted by dragon fire. The excruciating heat coming from the dragon was slowly burning his body and he could almost feel blisters forming on his back.

_Where is my damn broom?_

A sudden blast of fire filled his hearing again, but the blistering heat was missing.

_Almost as if it wasn't aimed at me._

Peeking around the rock, he saw the Horntail looking back towards the school as it let out another primal roar.

The Firebolt was nothing but ashes. The bloody dragon must have incinerated it and he had no back up plan. The fear began to slowly creep up my gut as Harry furiously tried to think of another option.

Distract it?

_With what? I don't know how to transfigure rocks to animals._

Kill it?

_That's stupid. Again, with what?_

Maybe blinding the dragon would work. A piercer to the eye should do it. Before he was able to act on his makeshift plan, a small car rammed into his side and knocked him far to the side, no longer in cover.

Getting on his hands and knees Harry let loose a wet cough, spitting blood out onto the dirt. Luckily he didn't drop his wand. Harry struggled to stand as a wave of sharp pain stabbed into his side.

A foot-long horn was wedged between Harry's ribs. Blood slowly leaked from his mouth onto his chin and he was struggling to breathe. Another bloody cough had him reeling in pain, black spots filled his vision. A low guttural growl grabbed his attention and he looked into the eyes of his killer.

_I don't want to die._

The fear became stronger and his breathing became more erratic. He turned to run behind another boulder to avoid another bout of flames, but Harry was a fraction too slow. The raging inferno clipped his left side before he could make it, effectively broiling his left arm.

A scream escaped his lips as the skin on his arm blistered and boiled. The sheer dread mixed with the pain threatened to take over his mind.

_I'm going to die._

A tear of flesh and another scream was made when Harry ripped the spike from his side. The blood splattered the ground creating a crimson flower for all to see. Putting pressure on the hole he hoped to stem to flow of blood before he bled out.

_I can't die here._

The crippling fear Harry felt was quickly turning into a blaze of anger. The grip on his wand grew tighter as he dodged from one boulder to another, barely dodging another swipe from its tail.

_I refuse to die to an_ animal.

His grip grew tighter still as his rage reached a boiling point. His vision tinted red and the magic was rolling off of him in waves. A malevolent aura erupted from him and even the dragon seemed cautious. The ringing in his ears intensified; the fear was gone, replaced with all-consuming _**wrath**__._

Harry aim his wand at his gushing side and clenched his teeth, "_Incendio_." The hole in his side was quickly and painfully cauterized. He coughed up blood again and took aim at the boulder he was hiding behind.

"_Depulso!" _The boulder Harry was hiding behind crashed into the behemoth with the force of a cannonball, knocking it on its side. Pitch black chains erupted from his wand wrapping themselves around the dragon, pinning its wings to its sides and its mouth shut.

Unmistakable terror passed through its eyes as the chains began to tighten, like a boa constrictor around its prey. Loud cracks of broken bones filled the arena as the chains squeezed the life from the beast. Holding his side with his charred arm, he walked backwards towards the egg while keeping his wand trained on the flying lizard.

As Harry reached the nest and picked up the egg, the Horntail attempted to stand, wanting to protect its eggs. There was no compassion left in him as he pushed more magic into the chains, tightening them like a noose. The sound of teeth breaking entered his ears and he felt a quick rush of joy at his ability to keep the dragon pinned.

Harry made his way slowly back towards the tent with the egg in hand as his blood trickled onto the ground behind me. His vision was becoming blurry from blood loss, the direction he was going was basically a guess at this point.

The egg felt like it weighed a ton and Harry was barely able to hold onto to consciousness. A lapse in his concentration saw the dragon quickly beginning to stand again. The fury it felt must have been unimaginable.

Another wave of fear washed over him as he pushed whatever magic he had left into his midnight chains. A thundering pop echoed throughout the arena as its vertebra separated from its skull. Harry stopped moving and noted the eerie calm that fell; the only noise was his labored breathing and the soft drips on his blood on the hard dirt.

Harry took a step back towards the tent and collapsed.

_I __**refuse.**_


End file.
